Servatorem
by E.Rebellion
Summary: After getting caught in a terrorist attack, Lucy Heartfilia is saved from death by a stranger. Months later, she decides to thank him. Her search is successful, but she ends up getting more than what she bargained for when Fairy Tail's third master gives her a mysterious diary. What's even stranger? Apparently, it belonged to a woman named Anna Heartfilia. (Cover art not mine)
1. Chapter 1

Context: This is basically the modern world. Mages exist but they're very rare and you have to be born with the magic. It usually shows up at a young age. Mages also live for hundreds of years at a time. If you need any more clarification just drop it in a review. Enjoy.

* * *

 **. Servatorem .**

* * *

Lucy bit her bottom lip, staring intently at the book in her lap. She sat on the park bench, next to one of Hargeon's main roads. It was relatively quiet as she read, aside from the occasional car honk and delighted shriek from a child. People passed her by, paying her no mind. Most were on their phones. Others were chattering idly with their friends.

She couldn't hear them anyway. Headphones had been placed over her ears, blasting her favorite song on repeat. She flipped a page, eyes flitting over the words quickly in suspense. In the book, an intense action scene was playing out.

To her left, someone took a seat. She hardly noticed until they tapped her on the shoulder. The blonde jumped slamming the thick, brown, leather-bound book closed. Etched simply in jagged letters on the front was the title: _END_.

Looking at the person who tapped her, Lucy was pleasantly surprised to see her best friend staring back at her. Her pale cheeks were tinted with a rosy hue that clashed with the soft blue waves that tumbled down her shoulders.

"Juvia!" Lucy chirped, leaning forward to wrap her arms around the azure blue haired woman after pulling off her headphones. She placed them around her neck, still faintly able to hear the hum of the song.

Juvia excitedly returned the hug. "Hello. I was just on my way to practice and saw you here. I wanted to stop by and greet you." She pulled away and grinned. She let out a small laugh that was visible in the chill of the air.

A soft smile graced Lucy's face. "Yeah I thought so," She said, eyes flitting over to the duffle bag thrown over her friend's shoulder and the easily removable shorts and tank she wore, even though it was the middle of winter. She would've asked how she wasn't freezing like that, but she had long since learned that Juvia had a strange tolerance for the cold. "Well, I wouldn't want to make you late. Text you later?"

With a nod, Juvia shouldered her duffle bag and stood once again. With a parting wave, she jogged away.

Lucy kept eyes on her until she rounded the corner and left her line of sight, then put her headphones back over her ears and went back to her book. She sat like that in peace for another hour before anything attention grabbing happened. A wind blew past her as a speeding truck tore down the street, causing the papers she had placed next to her to rustle and fly onto the sidewalk. The truck was clearly breaking the speed limit.

With a scowl, the blonde adjusted her fluffy red coat and smoothed down the skirt that partially obscured insulated black leggings. She moved the headband of her headphones so that she would be able to hear out of one ear while the other still blared the music that played from her phone. She knelt on the sidewalk and began gathering the papers strewn over the sidewalk, intent on moving further from the road.

She stuck her notes haphazardly behind the cover of the book and tucked it under her arm as she stood. She pulled out her phone to see if she had any new messages. Upon seeing none, she placed it back in her front pocket and began making her way down the sidewalk at a leisurely pace.

The blonde stumbled as a man shoved passed her in a hurry, barely able to keep from falling. She regained her balance and glared at the retreating figure. "Jerk!" Lucy shouted after the man, who's greasy dark purple hair was the only thing she could see from behind. That and the hideous shade of green that was his cloak. She let out an irritated sigh and leaned down to get her book.

One second, she was tucking her book securely inside her coat, and the next, heat was pushing at her back in waves. A scream was torn from her throat as something slammed into her from behind, sending her lurching forward. She was airborne for a second, sailing through the park before she hit the ground again.

The air was knocked out of her lungs when her back hit the earth, but her momentum carried her, causing her to roll until she crashed painfully into the statue at the center of Hargeon's park. It was beautiful, the statue. A man several feet tall holding a sharpened sword pointed downward at the ground, hovering a few meters above the earth. The whole thing was made from what she would've guessed was clay.

The statue shook from the impact, the oversized sword that was held in its hands wobbling. Lucy panted for breath as she hauled herself into a sitting position. Everything hurt. She threw her head back against the statue and cursed at the sharp pain that flared in the back of her skull. It quaked again, but she didn't pay too much attention.

At least until the sword slipped from the loose hold it had been held in and dropped toward the earth. Terror shone on Lucy's face as she numbly pulled herself away so that it wouldn't hit her face. The large weapon sliced through the side of her thigh and forced itself into the earth. One day, she'd look back and count herself lucky because she'd been able to move her head out of the way just in time.

A strangled groan made its way up the back of Lucy's throat. She let out a choked sob and brought up her hands to try and push it away, to now avail. She only succeeded in slicing her palms against the sharp edges of the granite sword. Flinching, she withdrew her hands. She shivered, noticing that the back of her coat had been burned off and only the front and sleeves attached to her arms. It didn't feel like her back had been burned, but, from what she'd gathered, third-degree burns could sing nerve ends and therefore not cause pain.

She almost screamed, almost cried for help. But then she registered the distant screams of others through the ringing in her ears and swallowed the bile that had risen in her throat. It hurt. But other people needed help too, so if it meant someone else could keep breathing, she'd shut up and wait. She bit the inside of her cheek and wiped away her tears, forgetting about her sliced palms and accidentally smearing blood on her cheeks.

With shaky hands, she grabbed her phone from her pocket and stared at the clock on her home screen. For three minutes she sat there. Three minutes of agony, during which she had convinced herself that she was going to die. She pulled up her messenger app and fired off a text to Juvia.

Her vision blurred a little as she hit send and her breathing went shallow. She looked up at the chaotic environment around her. Through the haze of her vision and the mess of first responders, she could still see the lean figure of a man approaching her. He reached her and bent down, looking into her eyes.

Relief flashed across his face and Lucy took in what she could of his appearance. His eyes were easy to focus on, the color a nice mix between black and green. The majority of his hair was black, but she could see the hints of his roots showing. She couldn't tell which color they were, since every time she tried to focus on it the image would just blur. The muscle shirt he wore was singed on the edges and she could see the red mark on his shoulder clearer than most other things.

She looked back at his face, trying to focus. Somehow, she noted in the back of her mind, the book was still tucked inside what remained of her coat. His lips moved, but she couldn't hear what he was saying with all the ringing in her ears. Her head lolled to the side. He seemed to take this as an answer, removing the heavy blade in one swift motion.

He ripped away some of her leggings, just enough space so the area around the wound was clear of clothing. Lucy stared at him as he glanced at her hesitantly. He said something again, and she nodded even though she had no idea what. He looked away again, and Lucy let her eyes droop close as he placed his hands on the bloody gash.

Flames surrounded his hands, burning her skin and causing her to jolt. She brought up a hand to weakly push him away, but it fell limply at her side, the action sapping away whatever strength she'd had left. The pain was too much. She passed out.

* * *

Lucy awoke the next day in the hospital. She didn't know how long she lay there, too tired to move a single muscle. Had it not been for the blinking of the heart monitor, she knew she would've gone insane from the silence.

Eventually, the door clicked open revealing a woman. She wore a bright white coat and had what might've been a permanent smile on her face. Streaks of gray went through her pure black hair, which was tied up into a neat bun at the top of her head.

The blonde moved to sit up, but the old woman, who she assumed to be a doctor, plucked her lightly on the forehead head. While it wasn't enough to injure her, it was certainly surprising enough to keep her laying down.

"Don't sit up yet," The woman scolded, picking up a chart clipped to the side of her bed. She flipped through the pages for a moment. Then she said, "You're Lucy Heartfilia, twenty years of age, correct?"

It sounded more like a statement than a question, but Lucy nodded her head ever so slightly anyway. "Good. I am Elizabeth. I'm one of the doctors on call and I'm going to tell you why you're here. Okay?" She didn't wait for a response. "Okay. You have minor burns on your hands and back, and also one where a sword wound on your leg was cauterized."

Lucy swallowed thickly, her throat feeling dry. "Cauterized? Why?"

As if she hadn't heard, the doctor continued scanning the chart. Finally, she delivered an answer, "To save your life. You would have died before the emergency respondents got there had it not been. You're lucky he was there."

"Who?"

The doctor hummed. "We're not exactly sure. He was in a mage guild, we know that much, so he shouldn't be too hard to find if you want to seek him out. For whatever reason, he ran away when first respondents got there. Ah, and he had a red mark on his shoulder. That's about all the description says, other than the fact that he wore a white scarf.

Elizabeth set the chart back on a nearby table with a clatter. "Right now, there's a chunk missing from your leg. If you want to fully recover, you'll have to go to Crocus for magical tissue and muscle reconstruction. Nod your head if you're willing."

Lucy gave a weak nod.

"You leave tomorrow. As all your relatives are dead, you're going to have to make a call to someone who can help you." The woman pulled a phone from one of her inside pockets and held it out to the blonde, who stared at it thoughtfully for a brief moment before taking the object.

She recognized it as her phone, and easily dialed the memorized number of her best friend. The sound of dialing commenced and Elizabeth left the room, presumably to treat some other patients. While it rang, Lucy noticed a controller that adjusted the position of her bed. She fingered the buttons until the bed was in a position to where she was upright with a slight incline to the ceiling.

On the last ring, the dialing stopped and Juvia picked up the phone. "Lucy! Finally, I have been looking for you all morning. I was worried after you sent that message,"

The blonde could hear the relief in the swimmer's voice. She wanted to cry and scream about how fucked up life was for her to be screwed over like this. She sucked in a deep breath and then spoke, "Juvia, I have to go to Crocus," She informed, spotting a glass of water next to the flowers on her bedside table. She began taking slow sips as she listened to Juvia's response.

"What? Why? You need to stay in Hargeon. Especially at a time like this," Juvia questioned.

With her throat feeling much better, Lucy delivered the bad news. "I got caught in the blast. I need to go get magical tissue reconstruction on my leg."

There was a long moment of silence. "...Do you want me to go with you?" Juvia said softly.

"Please,"

"Okay. I'm on my way to the hospital. Lucy...you're going to be okay, right?"

"I don't know."

* * *

 **This was just a fun little prompt to get me back in the writing mood. I have all theses ideas for Celestials but the problem is I'm having trouble working them into the storyline. I don't want to, but I think I'll have to take it down again and start it from the Tenroujima arc. Honestly, I'm not having fun writing it anymore, and I know I won't until I get to that part.**

 **Anyway, hoped you liked the maybe-oneshot. I won't post it as complete because I may come back sometimes but tell me your opinions in the reviews anyway :)**


	2. Chapter 2

**. Servatorem .**

* * *

"Welcome to Crocus Grand Hospital, Building C." The intercom voiced as they entered the building.

Juvia's hands gripped the handles of Lucy's wheelchair tightly as she rolled her in. The swimmer looked around the area warily. Thankfully the walls weren't the blinding white of usual hospitals, but instead a soft baby blue. A few chairs lined the wall next to the entrance. There was a brightly lit hallway leading who-knows-where. Across from those chairs was a dark black desk with a woman behind it.

The receptionist looked up at them with a smile. "Hello, do you have an appointment?"

Lucy fiddled with her bag, which was situated carefully in her lap. "Yes, Lucy Hearfilia, ten o'clock." She replied as they stopped in front of the desk. She tried her best to focus, the pain medication keeping her mind a little out of the loop. It was starting to wear off, she registered in the back of her mind.

The lady scanned a list of names and then nodded. "Yes, I see." She pulled open a drawer and removed a clipboard with a few papers on it. She placed them down on the table, along with a pen. "I'm obligated to inform you of the risks of magical tissue reconstruction on regular humans."

Lucy grabbed the pen and clipboard. The receptionist continued, "It's very possible that this could further destroy any cells, instead of healing them. There's a fifty-fifty chance that you'll contract Tissue Degeneration, which is a magic-caused disease that shuts down cells in the body and spreads slowly. The only way to remove it is to cut out the illness, rendering you even further disabled. Would you still like to proceed?"

Juvia gave her a look that clearly said 'I don't like those odds' that promptly went ignored by the blonde. She gave a curt nod as she finished skimming through the legalities and signed her name on the dotted line. With shaky hands, she slid the clipboard across the desk toward the receptionist-Linda, her name tag read.

Linda picked up her phone and made a short call, probably signifying that a patient was ready. When she put it down, a nervous question blurted out of Lucy's mouth. "What's the doctor like?"

Behind her, she heard Juvia shuffle her feet before Linda gave her answer. "We cycle through mage doctors often. The doctor assigned to you is a young mage from the guild Cait Shelter. As far as I know, she's very sweet." Linda gave her a tight smile.

"Oh... I see," She muttered. Her hand groped the air behind her, seeking a hand for comfort, which was gladly provided by her best friend. In a manner meant to reassure her, Juvia squeezed her hand. It worked, more or less.

They waited in silence for a few moments. It was disturbed by the pounding of feet against the polished tile flooring. Lucy stopped fiddling with the straps of her purse and looked up to see who was approaching.

A girl with dark blue hair came into view, breathing raggedly and carrying a frantic expression. "I'm sorry, I got caught up!" Her pretty blue and yellow dress flowed as she turned to walk away, then stopped. She turned back to them with a slightly embarrassed expression. "Please, come this way,"

Lucy and Juvia exchanged skeptical glances before the bluenette began pushing her down the brightly lit hallway.

* * *

After taking the elevator to the twelfth floor and walking into the wrong room twice, Lucy realized that the healer may have been kind of spacey. "I'm sorry," The young girl said again, "I just got here yesterday, and I'm still learning my way around. I think this is the door,"

For her sake, the blonde sincerely wished it was. The girl looked like she was about to die of embarrassment when they walked into the first wrong room and seemed to be on the verge of a heart attack after the second.

It was, thankfully. Juvia pushed her wheelchair into the room and stopped by the gurney. Lucy hoisted herself up onto the hospital bed. It was more comfortable than the last one she was in, but it fell short of any normal standards of an average bed.

She looked around the room. The walls were painted a soft blue and three chairs were pushed up against the wall next to the door. Directly across from her on the back wall next to the window was a sink that had several cabinets lining the spaces above and below it. On the adjacent wall, to the blonde's left, was a door she assumed to be the bathroom. Various carts were placed around the room with medical paraphernalia placed on them.

"What was your name again?" Juvia asked the girl who bumbled around the room, getting supplies and equipment ready.

Again, the girl seemed embarrassed. She paused in rearranging tools to face them completely. "Oh, um, Wendy Marvell. I'm from the Cait Shelter guild. Over there is my friend Carla." She nodded to the large window that looked out on the parking lot and the famous Crocus Gardens, then placed a tray of things onto a movable cart. Having introduced herself, Wendy continued about her business.

Both women looked to the windowsill, where a white cat stood on her hind legs, staring blankly outside. Lucy was surprised she hadn't noticed her before. "Could you move that, please?" Wendy asked Juvia, referring to the wheelchair in her path. Juvia obliged. She pulled the chair next to her and sat back once more. Lucy was okay with her keeping quiet. She didn't have to talk, she just needed the moral support that her best friend was always willing to give.

Putting her tools next to the bed, Wendy also rolled up a chair for her to sit on. "You got hurt in the attack two days ago, right? On your thigh?" Lucy gave an absent nod to the question, still feeling a little out of it. She was constantly stuck between states of numbness, denial, and bitterness. Right now she was mostly numb. Wendy propped up her leg and hiked up the blonde's dress enough to see the wound.

She undid the bandages. All of a sudden, the pain hit her like a sack of bricks. Her mind came into focus and she was acutely aware of just how much it hurt. Her jaw clenched shut and she fisted her hands into the previously neat bed sheets.

Hesitantly, Juvia peeked over Wendy's shoulder to get a look. The visual made her want to gag, but she held herself back for the sake of her best friend. She slumped into a seat a quickly tried to rid herself of the distinct image. Areas of skin, muscle, and fat could clearly be separated from each other, and in that split second glimpse, she thought she saw a tiny sliver of bone white.

Wendy, for her part, seemed mostly unfazed, only giving the blonde a sad look before getting to work.]. She tentatively brushed her finger against the burnt flesh around the avulsion. Lucy jerked, and the mage was quick to rush out a hasty apology. "It's fine," The blonde whimpered shrinking into the sheets.

When the girl held her hands up again, Lucy looked ready to dive out of the bed and onto the floor. Wendy gave her a look that showcased her guilt before her hands began to glow and a warm sensation spread through the wound.

Lucy visibly relaxed. "That... that feels nice," She hummed. For the first time in two days, she felt at ease, like there was nothing to worry about. All the emotional baggage and tension that had built up inside her was momentarily gone. Wendy gave her a fleeting look of mild surprise.

"They usually say it hurts or stings a little." She said in a small voice. Carla turns to give Lucy a piercing, calculating stare. Just as soon as she had looked she had stopped, gaze refocusing out the window and admiring the scenery.

"Who does?"

"Non-mages."

It was quiet for a bit after that. It felt like an eternity, but Lucy knew it had probably only been an hour. The white cat slowly turns to give Lucy a scrutinizing gaze, as if waiting for something. Abruptly, Carla opens her mouth. "Aren't you going to say thank you?" She says hotly.

"Carla!" Wendy whispers. The cat raised her nose into the air, almost as if to show she's better than them.

In a way, the cat reminds the blonde of her past. She had the same pompous attitude that usually came with being a child with a lot of privileges. Even though she didn't like her attitude in the slightest, Lucy knew that she wasn't wrong. "No," She says with a sigh, "She's right. Thank you," Lucy tells the girl in earnest.

"It's nothing," Wendy mutters, though the sweat starting to accumulate at her temple suggested otherwise.

"What's it like being in a guild?" Juvia asks after a moment of pause. On the inside, she was screaming. That cat had no right to be rude to her friend. She kept her trap shut and tried to distract herself with listening instead. As far as she knew, Cait Shelter was all flowers and rainbows, nothing like her old guild. It would be nice to hear someone else's perspective on guild life.

Wendy's eyes sparkled. Or maybe it was the reflection of the glittering glow of her hands. "It's amazing!" She gushed, "I have lots of friends, and the Master is so nice. I've been a member for a really long time,"

For a few minutes, they listened to her go on about how great it was. A soft smile rested on all of their faces. As Wendy's rambles died down, Lucy reached for her bag and pulled out the book it contained. A new red splotch dotted the cover and ran along the spine.

Lucy pulled out a pad of sticky notes and a pen before she opened it. Carla stared at the cover of the book a little longer than what normal curiosity would allow. Though her brow rose, she said nothing.

"What language is that?" Wendy asked after spying the text inside. The pages and the script looked centuries old. Usually, she wasn't so bold, but curiosity got the best of her.

The blonde gave an unsure shrug. "I'm not sure. I don't know how, but I know what most of the symbols mean. I've had the book since forever, and I decided to decode completely it a few days ago."

"That's so cool," Wendy said, voice coming more out of breath than she thought it would sound. Her breathing became labored and the glow of her hands faltered. "Are you alright?" Lucy asked in concerned.

Carla was by the girl's side in an instant. "Don't push yourself, Wendy." She said firmly.

"It's okay. I'm done now." The mage said with a huff. She puffed her cheeks and took in a deep breath of air, and Lucy admired her stubbornness.

Lucy looked her her leg. The skin where the avulsion used to be was a raised, shiny scar. the skin was dusted with a light shade of pink. The burn had been healed, too, rendered a slightly darker blotch around the scar. She couldn't help but stare at it.

"I'm sorry about the scar," Wendy said, pulling her out of her daze.

The blonde gave her a bright smile. "No need to be sorry. It looks cool. Thank you." She pulled the healer into a bear hug, and the girl gasped in shock. She didn't think the scar looked cool, but seeing the girl so happy was enough reason for her to tell a little white lie.

"What do you think you're doing? Let her go!" Carla demanded. Lucy held her for a few seconds longer before pulling away and letting her go. Wendy blushed, then busied herself with helping Lucy stand. After she was on her feet, with her weight situated off her newly healed leg, she grabbed the crutches she'd placed next to the wall.

"Don't put too much weight on it. It's new muscle, so you have to build it up before you can walk normally. It should only take a few weeks, even without physical therapy. You're free to go," Wendy said with a happy grin. She gathered Lucy's things into the blonde's bag.

"Juvia," The blonde called to the dozing girl. She couldn't blame her, they'd been there for at least four hours.

The swimmer jolted awake, eyes nearly popping out of her skull. At seeing Lucy on her feet again, relief crossed her features. She grabbed hold of Lucy's bag and they began making their way out. They gave a parting wave to the Cait Shelter mage before turning and disappearing around the corner.

"I'm super hungry," The blonde admitted as they stepped into the elevator.

Juvia gave her an award winning smile. "I saw a cafe on the other side of Crocus Gardens. Wanna go there?"

"Let's."

* * *

 **I don't own Fairy Tail.**

 **Real talk, I'm starting to really love LaLu. Don't get me wrong though, NaLu is still my OTP. I haven't edited this yet, by the way, so feel free to point out any errors.**


	3. Chapter 3

**. Servatorem .**

* * *

A few weeks later, Lucy found herself sitting in her Hargeon apartment, fully healed and drinking some tea. Her white (technically bright silver) German Shepherd, Plue, lay lazily next to where she sat on the couch. A thunderstorm raged on outside, beating against the side of the building and soothing her with the noise of its heavy raindrops.

Absently, she traced the edges of her scar. A nightmare had woken her up. One where she hadn't made it and she actually died. The vague image of Juvia at her funeral, watching her coffin being lowered into the ground next to the tombstones of her parents was haunting.

Lucy tried to find something to occupy herself with, but there was nothing. She'd tried writing her novel but had hit major writer's block and nothing she put down on the paper sounded right. Any other time she couldn't sleep she would walk Plue, but she didn't want to put herself in danger by going out into the storm.

Shaking her head back and forth, she picked up her phone to call Juvia. The clock read 1:00 AM. With a resigned sigh, she put the item down next to her on the couch. She wouldn't bother Juvia with her problems, especially not this late at night.

A yawn stretched out her face. She leaned over and grabbed the remote from the coffee table, turning on the tv and flicking through the channels. Just as she settled on a comedy show the lights went out and the television turned off. She huffed. Eventually, her mind wandered back to the dream, and then to why she was having it in the first place.

In the dark, sitting on her cushy red couch, she sifted through the blurry images of what she remembered of that day. Reading END, talking to Juvia, the suspicious man, and then explosion. The pain ghosted over her, and she shivered. It was just a memory, but it felt as real as when it had actually happened.

She focused on his image. The mop of black hair on his head and the sharpness of his eyes. She could see the red emblem on his arm and feel his fire licking at her skin. The blonde projected his image onto the wall across from her, staring at the slightly hazy image.

For a few minutes, she just sat there, looking at the wall. After what felt like an eternity of imagining his eyes, a smile lit up Lucy's face and a light bulb went off in her brain. She leaned over the arm of her couch and picked up her computer, pulling it into her lap before she opened the lid. Luckily, she had left it on the charger all day before the power went out.

At the very least, she had something would occupy her time and help her tire herself out. For hours, she researched, the only soundtrack to her work being the beating rain of the thunderstorms and the light snores that escaped Plue.

* * *

"You... you're going to do what?" Juvia questioned. She wasn't sure if Lucy was joking or not.

The blonde didn't look up from her piece of paper. The image she was drawing kept most of her attention, but she still listened to Juvia. "I said that I want to find the man that saved me. To thank him,"

The blue haired woman wanted to be surprised but couldn't find it in herself. Somehow, she expected this. "How?" The question was obvious, and she knew the blonde had the whole thing planned out.

Lucy perked. "You know how you used to be in that guild?" She said, putting down her pencil. She examined her work and nodded in approval. This was exactly how she remembered it.

Juvia nodded but didn't stop stirring the eggs she was preparing. "Phantom Lord? Yeah, what about it?"

Lucy stood, paper in hand, and moved across the kitchen to show Juvia the image. "Do you recognize this mark?" Her tone was hopeful.

At first glance, she almost answered no. She gave it a closer look. Some of the features were off, but she couldn't blame the blonde for not getting it spot on. "It's Fairy Tail. They're rivals with Phantom Lord. This is the mark he had?"

Lucy grinned. "Yes! Do you know where it is?" She pressed, hoping for more information.

Juvia shook her head. "Sorry, but no. Guilds don't usually disclose their exact location, but I do know their headquarters are somewhere near Clover."

The blonde deflated. "If people don't know where they are, how are they supposed to join?" She said.

"Through the Magic Council. If someone wanted to join a guild, they'd go to the Council. There, they'd confirm they were a mage and then the location would be disclosed. Or, they could run into someone already in it." Absently, Juvia added, "That's how I joined Phantom. Gajeel took me."

"That makes sense, in a dumb way," Lucy called from the other room. She brought her laptop to the circular table in the kitchen and sat down as just as Juvia finished with the eggs and put the bacon in the pan. French toast had already been separated onto plates, so the last thing cooking was the bacon.

Lucy typed the name into her search engine. None of the results were of what she was looking for. Below the search box, she notices some small italicized text highlighted in blue.

 _Showing results for 'Fairy Tale'. Show results for 'Fairy Tail' instead?_

She dragged the mouse over the text and clicked it. At some point, Juvia had come to hover over her shoulder. Plue sat next to the counter, eyeing the food hungrily even though he had eaten an hour ago.

Articles appeared and she clicked the first one, something by Sorcerer Weekly. In all caps at the top of the page was: FAIRY TAIL MAGES.

There were categories where she could decide gender, magic, skill, and age. Juvia shuffled away to finish cooking while Lucy put in the filters. Male, fire. Those were the only ones that she both knew and could fill out.

Two names popped up. Macao Conbolt and Natsu Dragneel. She clicked the first.

She looked at the picture of Macao and could tell it wasn't him. His hair and eyes were the wrong color, his guild mark was in the wrong place, and he looked a little too old. She didn't bother to read the information next to his picture before clicking off.

She moved on to Natsu. In the spot where his picture would be, there was a box stating 'NO PICTURE AVAILABLE.' She huffed.

A plate full of food was placed next to her on the table. Lucy looked at her gratefully. "Thanks," She shut her laptop and pushed it aside, deciding to read it later.

Juvia nodded in acknowledgment and sat across from her. Plue plopped next to them, pleading eyes going ignored. "Find anything?" She asked, digging into her eggs.

"Maybe," The blonde replied, savoring the taste of the french toast. "You have to teach me to cook some day," She said, shoving a helping of eggs into her mouth.

"I really should. Maybe then you can make your own breakfast for dinner." Juvia jested, smirking around her bacon.

Lucy snorted. She got up and poured two glasses of lemonade, then sat down and slid one over to her friend. "You love cooking for me."

"Yeah, right," came Juvia's sarcastic reply.

Lucy laughed and took a sip of her drink. "How did swim class go today?"

Juvia huffed, annoyed. "That kid was hitting on me today again. I'd switch him to Aquarius' class, but I don't want him to die, or anything."

"That's probably a good idea. She'd drown him if he even started. You should just tell him you're not interested. Or better yet, kick him out of your class," The blonde said.

"I know," Juvia said reluctantly, "But-I don't know. I know he's a good kid, and he's an amazing swimmer. He said he want's to be an Olympian one day. One with a gold medal. I can see him doing that."

Lucy's eyes softened. "Do you know why he acts that way?" She placed her fork down, plate practically empty. Plue whined. With a roll of her eyes, Lucy threw some of her left over eggs onto the ground, where the dog greedily licked them up.

She heard Juvia swallow her last bite. "From what I can tell, it's because his dad's not well. This is probably just his way of coping."

"Oh. In that case, just let him know that he can talk to you if he needs it." The blonde offered. She collected their plates and put them in the sink, along with their empty cups.

Juvia stood, checked the time on her phone, and sighed. "I'd better get going before it gets too dark. Thanks for the advice, though,"

Lucy smiled. "No problem."

They hugged briefly, then Juvia was on her way out the door.

* * *

Lucy dragged a hand through her hair in frustration. Not a single picture anywhere. There wasn't much information either; all she could find was his age, twenty, and that he was extremely destructive by nature.

It was late, she realized. She'd exhausted herself scouring the internet and just wanted a shower at this point. It would help her organize her thoughts.

Nodding to herself, she grabbed a towel, stripped off her clothes, turned the water up as high as it would go, and hopped in. Her mind raced as she slowly scrubbed her skin clean.

Juvia had said that Fairy Tail was located around Clover. She supposed she could make a trip there, maybe ask around. If things didn't pan out, she could always come back and look for more leads.

She turned off the water and stepped out. After stretching and putting on her clothes, she climbed into bed and closed her eyes in an attempt to go to sleep.

It didn't work. An hour later, she was staring at the ceiling while listening to Plue's content snores. In a strange way, she was jealous of him. Wearily, she checked the clock on her phone. Eleven p.m., it read.

Her insomnia was back, she realized. She thought she'd kicked the habit years ago when she first met Juvia in grief therapy. Lucy rolled out of bed and began packing.

First came the essentials. Underwear, toothbrush, and some toothpaste. Then she began putting clothes in. Jeans, shorts, a few skirts, not too many because she wouldn't be gone for long. Some of her favorite tops soon followed. Next, she stuffed a few pairs of shoes and socks. Her written manuscript and laptop were placed in the outer pouch of the small suitcase.

She sifted through her wardrobe until she found the small white travel bag. It had a dog bone stitched onto the front with Plue's name written underneath it in sharpie. Nodding to herself, she went around her apartment and shoved whatever things Plue might need into the bag. Dog food, chew toys, treats, and an extra leash we all stuffed into the bag before she closed it.

The blonde squeezed it into the corner of her larger suitcase then closed the lid and plopped herself on top of it. Grunting from the effort, she zipped up the slightly over-packed suitcase and placed it by the door.

"Plue," Lucy called leash in hand. The dog opened his eyes and looked at her wearily, as if annoyed. "Come on, we're going on a trip," She said, waving him over.

Lazily, the German Shepard stood, stretched, then trotted over. She attached the leash to his collar before checking to make sure she had her phone, keys, and wallet. Just as she opened the door to leave, she glanced back at the book that sat on her coffee table.

Glancing from it to the door a few times, she made up her mind and grabbed it, forcing it into her suitcase before heading out the door with her dog in tow.

...

The walk to the train station was quick, with Plue dragging her half the way there. She approached the teller, an old man who smiled at her presence.

"Excuse me, sir, but when is your next train to Clover?" The blonde asked politely.

He glanced at his timetables and said, "You're in luck, the train happens to currently be boarding right now. How many tickets would you like?"

"Just the one." She answered without pause as she handed him her credit card. He swiped it and handed her the ticket.

Faintly, she heard him call, "Have a safe trip," but didn't truly register it until she was on the train and it was too late to give her thanks. She felt bad about not saying thank you but didn't dwell on, instead opting to whip out her phone and fire off a text to Juvia.

Plue jumped up into the empty space next to her and rested his face on her lap, making a noise akin to a snort. She pressed enter and the message sent reading: Went to Clover with Plue for a few days. Will be back soon. The message was time stamped at twelve o'four a.m.

When the train started to chug along a moment later, she put her phone down and got as comfortable as she could on the bench.

* * *

 **I forgot to do this last chapter, but shout out to Fiery Keys for being first to review on chapter one and BeautifulAstrology for being first to review on chapter two.**

 **Thanks to these people for reviewing, too!: FlameDragonHime, Alaska Whitewish, soohialaus, and Kaze Tsubaki.**

 **Don't be scared to drop a review below! No, I still don't own Fairy Tail.**


	4. Chapter 4

After eight hours on the train—of which she was able to sleep six—a phone call from Juvia, checking into a hotel, feeding Plue, and searching for two hours, Lucy was starving.

She stopped by the nearest bakery she saw and had a breakfast consisting of a few banana, strawberry, and whip creme filled crêpes.

As she walked aimlessly down the street, she pulled out her phone and checked the time. Ten thirty-eight, read the timer. So far, Clover was turning out to be a huge waste of time. She was nowhere near giving up; however, her resolve was wavering. She supposed she could ask around and see what people knew.

The blonde stopped in the middle of the mostly-empty sidewalk, in front of a rather large building with a cliff overlooking it, and rummaged through her purse for the picture. She'd gotten a new one, one that wasn't the warped image of her memory and was instead printed from the internet. Plue sat down and began looking around. His tongue hung out the side of his mouth as he took in ragged, panting breaths.

"How cute," Someone commented. She looked around to see who. What she found was a short old man barely taller than the animal her was referring to. "What's his name?" He asked, petting the dog and scratching behind his ears. Plue relished in the attention moving to lay down on his back and expose his stomach.

"Plue," Lucy supplied, watching him carefully. The old man, who wore a blue and orange striped outfit, chuckled. One of Plue's hind legs started to shake, signaling that he'd hit the spot.

"I don't mean to be rude, but you seem a little lost. Where might you be going? I might be able to point you in the right direction," He asked kindly, looking up to smile at her.

Lucy's apprehension was eased slightly. "I don't really know, I'm just looking for someone." She admitted, pulling the picture from her bag. "He has this guild mark; do you recognize it at all?"

The old man stopped petting Plue and crossed his arms behind his back. "Why of course. What would you like to know, young lady?"

She hesitated, unsure of the exact question she wanted to ask. "Where it is? How to get there?"

The old man hummed, "Are you looking to join? What type of magic do you use, and what might your name be?"

"No, I'm not a mage. Lucy Heartfilia is my name."

"I see. What was the name of the person you're searching for?" He pressed.

"I think I'm looking for someone named Natsu Dragneel." Mentally, she cursed herself. Saying something like 'I think' made her sound oddly uncertain of herself.

The old man drew in a breath. "I'll see what I can do to help. If you'll excuse me, Lucy, I need to get in that building right there. I happen to be late for a meeting."

She stepped aside and he opened the door. Inside, people laughed and conversed, some shouted their greetings. "Makarov! Late as per usual," Someone called just as the door closed.

Lucy stared at the door a few minutes after it closed. Breaking from her daze, she slowly began walking back to her hotel. Standing alone in the elevator, she pulled out her phone and dialed Juvia's number.

"Juvia speaking."

"What do you know about a man named Makarov?"

* * *

Lucy stood outside the building for half an hour. Mostly because she was listening to Juvia, but part of her stayed still because she wanted another chance to talk with Makarov. After getting some answers from Juvia, she returned to her hotel and sat on the plush bed.

She unzipped her suitcase and pulled out her laptop, along with the written chapters of her novel. For a few moments, Plue watched her, but then got bored and curled up into a ball before going to sleep. Lucy glanced at him and a soft smile crossed her features.

Like the book, she'd had Plue ever since she could remember. He'd been with her through everything. Looking back on it, he had an abnormally long life span. Nineteen years was long for a dog, but she had never once questioned it.

Focusing back to the task at hand, Lucy opened her browser. Makarov Dreyar, she typed in. The first thing to pop up was a quick-link to an information page.

She read it over. Wizard Saint, third master of Fairy Tail, and a user of a type of light magic. Nothing Juvia hadn't already told her. She scrolled down the page. One son, one grandson, from Magnolia. That information was new.

Her brow raised in interest and she opened a new tab, searching up the city of Magnolia.

It was just south of Clover and was a fishing city similar to Hargeon, only much smaller. Pictures of tourist attractions appeared, and they didn't look all that impressive. A park, a cathedral, a public bath, and a nice cake shop, each coming with their own little descriptions.

The last picture was one that showed the entire city. A network of canals worked through the city and led out to the bay that the city overlooked. At the very back of the city, a seemingly large building stood. It was so far back she could hardly make out any details, but compared to the other buildings around it, it was brightly colored and very important. She looked back through the pictures of landmarks and none of them looked quite like that building.

Closing her laptop, for now, Lucy decided she'd spend the night in Clover and go to Magnolia tomorrow. She turned her attention to her novel. As a refresher, she skimmed through the last chapter she wrote then began working on her newest one.

Lucy wrote the day away. The few times she stopped were to feed and let Plue out, eat, and shower. At ten, the blonde was tired but unable to force herself to sleep. She huffed and stared wearily at the ceiling, knowing she was in for another sleepless night.

* * *

At some point, Lucy ended up using the hotel's wi-fi to watch movies on her laptop. When the sun began to rise at six, she was huddled under the blankets with her laptop, staring intently at the screen. Noticing a sliver of sunlight peak through a crack in the curtains, Lucy hopped out of bed and began packing her things.

She took a morning shower to try and make herself feel a little less tired, and she was happy to find that it worked. Lucy fixed her hair and put on some undergarments after she brushed her teeth. She pulled a short skirt from her suitcase, something she would usually wear around this time of year, but hesitated to put it on. She hadn't worn anything that went above her knees in months.

After the attack, she didn't exactly have the same confidence in her looks as she used to. People used to tell her how nice she looked when she walked down the street. Suddenly she'd acquired bruises and tiny little scars all over and she was confined to a wheelchair, then crutches. During that period, all she got were looks of pity. She didn't get those anymore, but her confidence was still at an all time low.

Taking a shaky breath, Lucy pulled on the deep blue skirt. A white and blue striped, v-neck tank top that exposed a little of her belly followed and cleavage. She placed some cash inside the small pocket on the breast, then pulled on her favorite brown boots that she wore almost everywhere.

Lucy stared at herself in the mirror. Most of her small, but still noticeable scars were on display, along with the much larger one on her thigh. "I look nice. I look fine." She told herself. She was more trying to convince herself of the statement than make an observation.

Turning away, she grabbed her suitcase and called Plue. They took the stairs down to the ground floor. The lady at the front desk waved them goodbye. "Thank you for staying" she called after their retreating forms. Lucy nodded in acknowledgment and returned the gesture.

The streets were even emptier than they had been the day before, and Lucy decided to chalk it up to the early hour. As soon as she arrived at the station, she approached the ticket booth. "Magnolia, please." She said, sliding the cash over.

"Your train leaves in half an hour." The woman told her, handing her her ticket and putting the money in the register. Lucy nodded her thanks. She got a snack from the vending machine and sat on the bench. She took the moment to toss Plue a few treats to stave off his hunger until she got around to feeding him breakfast.

The train arrived as the woman had told her and Lucy boarded. A few more people followed, and the train stayed at the station for a minute to allow more people on. Finally, they moved along, and the blonde leaned back into her seat and closed her eyes. Sleep didn't come, but at least she was able to relax in some way.

Lucy put in her headphones. Her favorite song played as she stared at the scenery passing by out her window. This train ride was much shorter than the last one, only two hours compared to the last train's eight.

They slowed to a stop at Magnolia Station, and it was exactly as she had seen it in the pictures; pristine and busy. She pushed her way through the crowd and to the exit. Taking in the fresh air outside, Lucy noticed that the streets of the city were as busy as it's train station. Merchant and shopkeepers were preparing the goods to be sold for that day, and shoppers were beginning to roam the streets.

Lucy moved through the streets, following the flow of people. Her luggage was noisy as she dragged it behind her on the cobblestone streets. Just as she saw Kardia Cathedral come into view, she spotted a hotel. Relieved, the blonde ducked in a paid for a room.

She dropped off her stuff and continued down the way, feeling much lighter than she had before. After several dead ends and many wrong turns, Lucy ended up staring at the bay. This was the last street of the city and, as she recalled, the building should have been on this lane.

Unlike the rest of the city, the buildings back here were spaced out, enough so that large buildings could be built in between them if somebody wanted. The building came into view, its' bright red roof making it stand out amongst the others.

She came to a point where she was standing directly in front of it. The mark that had brought her here hung proudly on a banner on the three-story building. Inside, she could hear laughter, yelling, and fighting. For minutes on end, she just stood there, staring. Plue sniffed around, tail wagging back and forth in excitement.

The blonde exchanged glances with her dog. He gave her a look that urged her to open the humongous double doors. Lucy nodded and did so. With some effort, she forced it open for them to slip through.

It was even louder than she thought it would be. They were in the midst of an all-out battle. Magick the likes of which she hadn't seen before flew through the air, along with tables and chairs. Those who weren't participating mingled about, laughing and talking with friends. Others sat and drank at the bar, served by a beautiful woman whom Lucy swore she'd seen on the covers of a few magazines.

A chair came flying her way. Lucy scurried over to the bar, dragging Plue along with her. The barmaid approached her, holding a try with a few mugs of beers atop it. "Hello, can I help you?" Her tone was sweet and kind, and it held a warmth that reminded Lucy of her mother.

"Yes. This is Fairy Tail, right?" The blonde asked as she took a seat in one of the plush stools. Plue barked at someone who laughed particularly loudly, but it was drowned out by the noise of everything else.

The woman opened her mouth to answer but was interrupted. "Mira! Where the hell is my booze?" A scantily clad brunette drawled, approaching the pair with something akin to annoyance spread across her face.

Mira placed the tray down and slid over to the woman. "Have at it," She said before turning back to Lucy. "This is Fairy Tail." She confirmed with a nod, leaning on the polished wooden counter top. "Are you looking to join?" The brunette sat down next to her and began drinking the beer as if it were water.

"No, I'm looking for Natsu. Is he here right now?" Lucy asked, staring at the drunkard in amazement.

"He's on a mission, but he should be back tomorrow." Mira's expression darkened. "Why? What did he do to you?"

The blonde shivered at the demonic look on her face. "Nothing! Well, nothing bad, anyway. I just wanted to thank him." She said. The fight died down and people began reorganizing the place, righting tables and putting everything back where it should be.

The brunette finished the last mug and belched. "Thank him? Most people who come in want to skewer him for property damage. Name's Cana, by the way."

Lucy gave an awkward laugh. Her phone buzzed and she hurriedly pulled it out to read the text Juvia had sent her.

 _You good?_

Cana peered at her phone. She recognized the name in bold letters at the top of the screen. "Juvia... Wasn't she that girl from Phantom?"

Lucy sent a text telling her friend what had happened and then put her phone away. "If you mean the guild, yeah, she used to be in it."

Mira stood upright. "How do you know her? Are you here to spy on us?" The suspicion spread across her face was clear.

"No, nothing like that. Juvia and I have been friends since grade school." Lucy said slowly, averting her gaze from the white haired woman.

The barmaid didn't look convinced. She turned and looked down the length of the bar. "Erza! Come her for a moment." She called. A woman with shining red hair looked up from the slice of cake she was munching on. With a sigh, she stood and walked over, gaze lingering on the dessert.

"What is it?" Her tone was impatient. She crossed her arms over her chest, which was covered by a breastplate. Erza's gaze wandered to Lucy. "You must be a new member. I can tell your magic is very strong, we will have to do battle one day." The woman declared, leaning in close and examining the blonde.

"Alright then, as long as Erza doesn't find you suspicious." Mira hummed and moved along to serve one of her waiting guild mates.

"I'm sorry?" Lucy said, confused.

"Your magic. I can see how strong you are through your aura. The Master is much better at it than I, however." Erza clarified, taking a few steps away.

"I'm not a mage," The blonde stated, shaking her head.

Erza leveled her with an equally confused gaze. The ground shook for a moment. Lucy wrote it off as her imagination. When it happened again, this time with a much harsher quake, she thought it an earthquake. Around them, people cursed. Erza sighed. "Excuse me, I have to check something."

The redhead walked over to Mira, and the two began exchanging words. The quaking knocked Lucy off her chair, and she hid the ground with a dull thud. Someone pushed open the guild doors, allowing a barking Plue to run away. "No!" Lucy shouted, reaching after him.

What she saw beyond the doorway shocked her. The city had completely shifted. All the buildings had risen and moved to the side, leaving a straight road starting from the city entrance and going all the way toward the guild. Bright red arrows pointed straight, telling someone that that was the way to go.

"Everyone put away your valuable," Someone else called.

Lucy brought herself to her feet and stared in awe. She'd never seen something so strange. On the hill of the straight road, a silhouette began to be visible. People began to crowd around the doorway, and Lucy shuffled away from them.

A voice rang out above all the others. "Looks like some of ya missed me,"

* * *

 **I don't own Fairy Tail.**

 **Thanks to these people for reviewing: Red-Velvet-Erza, FairyTail9908, IronicMelody43, and FlameDragonHime.**

 **I was going to have Lucy meet Natsu this chapter but then I was like, nahh. They'll meet for sure next chapter though. And as usual, I was too lazy to go back and correct my errors. If you find any please feel free to point them out.**


	5. Chapter 5

"Settle down!" Erza bellowed. Even though she was at the other end of the bar with Mira, it still felt like the woman had burst one of her eardrums. "Clear the entrance, let him through!" She commanded. People flocked back to their seats, allowing the man in the entrance to be seen.

His dull red hair was pushed back, allowing the grin and beard on his face to be seen plain as day. The large black cloak he wore was tattered at the end, letting his black boots and some of his black trousers be seen. He was dirty and looked like he hadn't seen a bath in weeks, maybe even months.

Faster than the blonde could blink, he was in front of the drunk at the bar, who had been attempting to ignore his presence entirely. "Cana, my baby! I missed you!" He cooed lovingly, reaching out his arms for a hug. Her foot collided with his face, but that didn't deter him at all. He continued to reach for her with an adoring look on his face.

"Will you cut it out? I'm trying to drink in peace!" Cana looked more amused than she did annoyed.

Mira walked by and took her mug. "Speaking of, I think that's enough for today. You've already had five kegs."

Cana faltered, allowing the man to grab at her and squish her in a bear hug. "Damn you!" Came the sound of her muffled voice, but she hugged him back anyway. While others chuckled and went back to minding their own business, Lucy couldn't bring herself to away. A father-daughter interaction like that only happened to her in her wildest dreams.

"No! Not my book!" A woman shrieked, prompting Lucy to tear her eyes away from the scene and look around. Next, to the entrance, a short woman with blue hair was wrestling a book from Plue. The dog growled, probably thinking it to be all good fun.

Lucy let out a relieved breath. "There you are," She muttered under her breath as she walked to them, stopping just at the girl mustered up enough strength to snatch the book away and cradle it to her chest.

"Is he yours?" Even though she seemed flustered, the short haired girl radiated a warm energy. Lucy nodded her head sheepishly.

"Yes, sorry about him. Plue used to do that all the time; I thought he grew out of it. Apparently not," The blonde said. She wagged a finger in the German Shepherd's face and he looked away in shame.

The woman huffed and smoothed down her short orange dress. "It's okay, a few bite marks never hurt anyone. Well, they have, but that's not the point." She laughed. "You must be a new member. I'm Levy, nice to meet you." She smiled and held out her hand for a shake. As Lucy shook her hand, she noted that, even if her heeled boots hadn't added an extra inch, she still would've been a few inches taller than her.

"Ah, I'm not a mage, but it's nice to meet you, too. You can call me Lucy."

Levy gave her a look that portrayed her confusion. "No offense, but if you're not a mage, then why are you here?" She led them to the bar, where they both took a seat.

"Don't worry, none taken. I'm just looking for someone." Lucy said as the rumbling started again. She assumed that it was just the town going back to normal. Levy placed her book on the counter, and the blonde noted that she had good taste in novels.

"Mind if I ask who?" The hazel eyed girl asked, waving down the barmaid for a drink. Mira gave her a thumbs up, letting them know it was on the way.

Lucy traced circles into the counter top. "Natsu Dragneel, I think."

"You found Natsu? If It was because he broke something of yours, we can pay for it." Levy said after a short moment of silence.

"It's nothing like that." She muttered with a weak chuckle, waving a hand dismissively. She could hear the faint sound of footsteps approaching from behind. "I just wanted to thank him for something,"

"Wait," the other girl said slowly, "Are we talking about the same person? Onyx eyes, lean build, pink hair?"

"Pink hair?" Lucy said, starting to shake her head.

Before Levy could open her mouth to say something else, a voice broke through their conversation. "Lucy, I'm glad to see that you've found your way here," Came a deep voice.

She swiveled in her seat to stare blankly at the short old man who stood with a smile on his face.

"Welcome back, Master. How did your meeting go?" Mira hummed, placing down two glasses of lemonade. Levy sipped eagerly from her straw, but Lucy was so busy staring that she didn't even touch hers.

The old man grinned. "It went very well. Bob was jealous of your magazine spread, as usual." He boasted.

"Glad to hear it," Mira sang, already moving to the other side of the bar.

Suddenly, a more serious air surrounded the old man. "Lucy, my office, if you would. Guildarts! You, too, in my office!"

* * *

Sitting in Makarov's office was more awkward than she thought it would be. In the chair next to her, Guildarts seemed to have a vague idea of why they were here, but still had a slightly confused look plastered on his face.

"Lucy, this is Guildarts. Guildarts, this is Lucy, the girl I told you about." Makarov said finally. He pulled a book from one of his desk drawers and placed it in front of him. The redhead gave her a long look.

"The one from the past? _That_ Lucy?" He looked her up and down, gaze almost calculating.

Makarov pressed his forefinger and thumb between his eyes, irritated. "You weren't supposed to say that!" He chided. "But yes, that Lucy."

Lucy shifted uncomfortably in her seat. The bookshelves lining either side of the room and window in the back reminded her of her father's old office. The large, messy stacks of paper on his desk did help turn her away from the thought, though. "I'm afraid you've got the wrong person," She said, nervously twisting a lock of hair around her finger.

The old man sat on his desk and sighed. He traced his fingers over the worn cover of the book before sliding it across the desk toward the blonde. "I want you to have this. Please, all I ask is that you read it very carefully."

She took it and examined it thoughtfully. The pages were yellowed with age, and some of them were wrinkled from being wet. The cover was a soft velvet. Stitched at the bottom, in the neatest of cursive, was _Anna Heartfilia_. It was a diary, she realized belatedly, and it had most certainly belonged to one of her ancestors. "Why... do you have this?"

Makarov crossed his arms. "It is all detailed in the book. For now, though, I must insist that you stay in Magnolia. It's becoming increasingly more likely that you'll get caught up in some trouble, which is why I've brought Guildarts here early."

He gave her a look. One that she couldn't decipher, but knew there was a deep meaning behind it. She decided to take him at his word, as he seemed trustworthy. "Okay." She looked back down at the diary, then up at him again. "But what kind of trouble? And how can you be so sure?"

"It's a long story. To put it simply, many dark guilds are after you because they need someone with your... _power_. And the Magic Council has been monitoring the situation. They put us in charge of finding you, but you just so happened to come to us." Guildarts said gruffly, causing her to jerk her head up and look at him. He knew the question she was going to ask before she even said it. "They want to resurrect someone. We can explain more when you finish reading the diary."

Lucy opened her mouth, then closed it. "So what? Are you going to just follow me around, stay in my house?" If she'd said it any other way, it would've sounded rude, but the way it came out made her sound just as confused as she felt.

Guildarts stood and pulled her to her feet. "Something like that. You won't even know I'm there," He grinned, patting her on the head. He towered over her and made her feel smaller than she was comfortable with. He started pushing her out the office, but she stubbornly stood in the same place. "But I have more questions!" She said. The redhead chuckled, then looped his arm around her waist and carried her under his arm.

"I can answer those later. For now, you should get reading." He opened the office door as she yelled at him to put her down. With another laugh, he dropped her outside and closed the door in her face. Lucy glared at the door with an angry blush. It opened again and he said, "Don't leave without me," with a wink. The blonde bristled.

She turned to leave but stopped. She pushed her ear to the door, straining to hear.

"Did you find Natsu?"

"No. He's been gone for almost a year, I'm surprised he hasn't broken anything or made the papers."

There was a sigh, but she couldn't tell who it came from. "Porlyusica said she should be waking up any day now. She'd be disappointed if one of her good friends weren't there to greet her."

Lucy brows rose. Who could they be talking about? She pressed closer to the door just as a deep chuckle rumbled from behind her. "Hear anything interesting?" Someone said in her ear.

"NO!" The blonde squeaked, jumping away. Another blush spread across her cheeks, this time out of embarrassment. In front of her stood a behemoth of a man, taller than Guildarts and possessing even more muscles. His hair was blond and spiked, and the lightning shaped scar on the side of his face was impossible to miss. He looked at her with stormy gray eyes and an amused smirk.

"Calm down, kid. I should report you to the old man, but you look like you're new around here. I'll let you off with a warning for now." He placed a large hand on her shoulder and started guiding her toward the staircase.

"Thank you?" She said, not entirely sure what to say. He left her at the front of the stairs then went back toward the guild master's office.

"Whatever, just don't do it again."

* * *

Lucy stood outside the guild doors, glancing impatiently at the street clock every few seconds. After talking to Levy about books for a few hours, she'd decided to leave. Unfortunately, Guildarts still had not left Makarov's office, so she was stuck waiting outside for him.

When the clock struck six, her impatience got the better of her. She huffed and began making her way back to her hotel, diary tucked under one arm while she held Plue's leash with the other. The sun was starting to set, painting the sky in various shades of red, purple and pink. By the time she reached her hotel, it had disappeared from the sky completely.

She paused to look at the constellations. She was able to pinpoint Cancer, Leo, and Virgo before Plue whined, clearly not willing to wait any longer for his meal. With a chuckle, the blonde walked in, waved to the receptionist, and took the elevator to her room.

Once she entered the room, she closed the door and let Plue off his leash. She thought she heard a dull thump outside her door, but waved it off. It was probably nothing. After setting out Plue's food, she glanced at the clock on her cell phone. It was about seven now.

Nodding to herself, she stripped of her clothing, grabbed a towel, and hopped in the shower. Midway through, while she was lathering her hair with shampoo, Plue started barking wildly. Her eyes shot open causing shampoo to run into them.

"Ow, ow, ow," She muttered shutting off the water and using her towel to rub furiously at her eyes. When the stinging subsided, Lucy cracked the bathroom door open. "Plue! Cut it out!" She told him in annoyance. She slammed the door shut, intent on resuming her shower and rinsing the rest of the shampoo out of her hair.

And she did just that; rinsing the shampoo from her hair and then using the conditioner. Once again, she reached for the shampoo to make sure her scalp was extra clean. Right when she went to pour the contents of the bottle onto her hand, Plue started barking again.

Before she could even blink, there was an explosion. A wave of heat washed over her, and she was projected back to the day that brought her here in the first place. The door flew open, and she almost expected to get slammed into a statue and get a chunk of her leg taken out by a sword.

"Guildarts! Fight me!"

Someone ripped the shower curtain open and not even a moment later a body collided with her, sending them both tumbling to the floor of the tub in a tangle of limbs. At some point, she'd squeezed the shampoo on his head.

For a few incredibly long moments, they just stared at each other. The color of his black hair slowly started washing away and matting to his forehead. It took the sound of her front door being busted open and the fire alarm going off for her brain to finally start working.

A fiery blush spread across her cheeks and she kneed him in the groin. "What are you doing?! Move!" She scrambled from under him as he grunted and flinched away from her. The first thing she did was snatch her towel and wrap it around herself. The second thing she did was dash out of the bathroom. Lucy shut the door behind her, then turned to face the chaos of her room.

Half of the exterior wall had been blown away, revealing the outside world. Plue was chasing a cat around the room. Her bed was on fire, but it was quickly going out due to the sprinklers overhead. The wallpaper was peeling from the heat. The door had been broken off of its hinges and neatly placed by the wall. Guildarts was midway to her, eyeing her with arguably the most perverted look she'd ever seen.

"Help me!" The blue cat shouted, sprouting wings and flying to her. The blonde shrieked and kicked him into the wall. As far as she was concerned, cats were not supposed to talk. She could hear the sound of news helicopters in the distance, and dove for her suitcase. At the very least, she could still preserve her modesty while appearing on live television.

As she began pulling on a shirt and a pair of pants, the door to her bathroom burst open. The man, who was somehow completely dry and had splotches of black in his pink hair, lunged at Guildarts with a feral grin on his face.

"Guildarts! Fight me!" He repeated, fist aflame. The cat plopped himself onto the half burned dresser.

"Aye, sir!" It cheered in an unusually high-pitched voice.

* * *

 **Dunno why, but I had a hard time with this one. I knew what I wanted to happen, but I just couldn't get the events to connect or flow very well. Sorry if that shows.**

 **Anyway, I don't own Fairy Tail.**

 **Thanks to FlameDragonHime and RockVsCreed for reviewing.**


	6. Chapter 6

**Yes, there is a time skip (by like, two hours). I tried starting from where I left off last chapter, but after three tries I just gave up. Ah, and I did make Natsu's house a little bigger. Enjoy.**

* * *

Again, she was sitting in Makarov's office, staring at the stacks of paper spread messily around the room and over the surface of his desk. He paced the floor in front of them with a scowl on his face.

"First," He started after a long stretch of silence, stopping to glare at the sheepish boy next to her. "You disappear into thin air for a year. And the first thing you do when you get back is destroy a hotel room?! And not just any hotel room, Lucy's hotel room!" He yelled. The blonde found her eyes drawn to the vein on his forehead that throbbed in anger.

"Sorry?" The boy in question said hesitantly, scratching the nape of his neck. Lucy glanced at him through the corner of her eye. His hair was mostly black, splotches of pink littering some spots with most being concentrated at the center. She remembered that to be the spot she accidentally squirted shampoo on him.

"Sorry, he says!" Makarov fumes, throwing his hands in the air. He snatches a television remote from his desk and presses the power button. The bookshelves on the right side move forward and then slide apart to reveal a tv set. The television is on, allowing them to see the news channel.

Lucy watches the playback of what had happened, slightly amused. The camera focused on Guildarts punching the boy through the wall, then panned over to show Lucy's horrified expression. It then zoomed out to show that the bed was on fire and that they were seeing the whole thing through a hole in the wall. It jerked to show the cat sprouting wings and flying to his friend's aid. The entire scene was slightly hazy due to the sprinklers that had gone off because of the fire.

In the background, people ran past the door, rushing to get to the stairwell. At the bottom, 'LOCAL GUILD SETS FIRE TO A HOTEL DURING A FIST FIGHT' ran on a loop.

"Look what you've done! The news has taken this completely out of context! And on top of that, Ollinday Inns has sent us a bill for damages!" Makarov waved the paper in his hands, shaking his head. He took another letter from his desk, this one unopened, and handed it to Lucy. "I have no doubts that this will be a formal letter stating your life ban."

The blonde sighed, opening it to find that it was, in fact, a notice from Ollinday Inns informing her of her life ban from all global locations. Lucy slumped slightly in her chair. She'd expected something like this to happen, but the realness of it had only just dawned on her.

"And because you've gotten Lucy permanently banned from Magnolia's only hotel, she will be staying with you for the time being. Am I clear?" Makarov said, giving the boy a narrow eyed stare.

Lucy gaped at the old man, and the boy next to her slumped in his seat. "Whatever you say, Gramps."

* * *

It was almost one in the morning when they got to Natsu's house. She'd found the person she was looking for in the most unconventional way, and a part of her wanted to throttle him instead of apologizing. His annoying talking cat, too.

"You kind of stink, Luigi." The cat commented for what could've been the hundredth time that night.

Lucy gave him a tired look. She hadn't finished her shower earlier, and then she'd had to walk through the woods to get to the place Makarov wanted to stay. Having argued with him on the matter a few times before, she was simply over it at this point. "Shut up, cat." The blonde said. She'd learned his name was Happy, but she refused to address him as such because the mood he was putting her in was the polar opposite.

She turned her gaze to the interior of the house, cringing at the awful shape it was in. She surveyed the place using the dim moonlight being let in through the open door. Clothes were messily thrown about the room, and the worn red couch had claw marks decorating the side of it. Various tools that would be used for working out were spread throughout the space. Dirty dishes covered the coffee table and some had spilled over onto the floor. The fireplace was almost over flowing with ash and still had half burned pieces of wood in it. Lucy swept her gaze to the left, over to the small kitchen.

Dishes were overflowing from the sink. Next to the sink was the stove, covered in soot and untidy. The counter tops were marble, but the surface was marred with stains and little chips. There was broken glass on the floor next to the island. The smell of something rotting wafted to her nose and she sighed. To top it all off, it seemed as if a layer of dust covered everything.

"Have you ever cleaned this place?" She in disgust, ushering Plue in and closing the door behind herself as he flicked on a light. The new light source allowed her to see the door nestled in the back corner, probably leading to the bedroom. Flyers and photos were pinned all over the wall next to it, and a plethora of objects had been arranged neatly on a few floating shelves placed near the center of the wall.

Natsu blinked, shrugging his bag from his shoulders. He carried it in his hands as he approached the wall, which seemed to be a memory wall showcasing all the things he'd done. He pulled a few things from his bag and began placing them in the empty places on the shelves. A chipped brown pot, a monster's fang, the bone of some dead animal.

What caught her attention most was the hair tie he pulled out. He held the bright pink object in his hand for a moment before placing it on a shelf with the others. Lucy recognized it as hers. It had more than likely fallen out of her hair and he simply ended up picking it up. Later, she decided, she would tell him later.

"You can take my hammock if you want." He said suddenly, lightly brushing his fingertips over one of the pictures. Lucy stepped over the things on the floor and settled down on the couch. Plue settled down on a pile of t-shirts near the coffee table.

"No thanks, I'm fine with the couch." The blonde responded. She stretched out, using her arm as a pillow.

Natsu hesitated. "You sure?" He asked as he turned off the lamp and placed his hand on the knob of the bedroom door.

Lucy hummed in reply. She heard him open the door and close it, Happy following behind. It was quiet after that. She wanted to sleep. As usual, though, she was unable to do so, even when she closed her eyes and counted to a hundred.

Sighing, the blonde stood up and turned on the lamp. If she couldn't sleep, she would at least try and do something productive.

* * *

Lucy settled down on the couch just as the sun had climbed low in the sky. Having found the cleaning supplies in the cabinets, she proceeded to use them to tidy up Natsu's house.

The clothes had been placed in hampers. The dishes had been cleaned and put away. The counter top was spotless, save for the few chips that had already been there. She'd scrubbed the oven clean. The rotten fish and moldy bread had been put into trash bags, along with all the ash in the fireplace. The place had been dusted clean, and she'd even swept the hardwood floors.

She stood and decided to go to the store, as they had no food for breakfast. Quietly, she pulled on her shoes and opened the door, shutting it lightly behind her.

X

The grocery bags were heavy, and Lucy supposed she should've considered the hike before she bought so much food. The walk back had taken much longer than before because of the extra baggage. She shifted some of the bags to her other hand in order to open the door.

Once inside, she closed it with her foot and placed the bag on the counter top. She sighed, relieved to have the weight gone. The blonde began putting away the food; fish, steak, vegetables, hamburger patties, and crayfish went in the freezer. She put the eggs, milk, cheese, bacon, fruits, lettuce, orange juice, and the like in the fridge.

Lucy checked her phone for the time. Nearly seven thirty. She removed her shoes and placed them back by the door, then put out Plue's food before flopping back on the couch. She looked tiredly at the ceiling, hoping she'd be able to sleep now that she had exhausted herself cleaning.

Her wish was somewhat granted, as she fell into a state between wake and sleep, but not really achieving either. She lay for what must've been an hour before she heard quiet noises emerge from coming from Natsu's room. "What if she's sleeping?" Happy whispered loudly.

"We'll just have to be ninjas," Natsu responded. The door swung open, creaking loudly in the process. There was a clanking of wood on wood.

"Natsu! Shhh," Happy whispered, louder than last time. They both shuffled out of the room, then dropped whatever they were holding. Happy stopped whispering altogether, not even trying to be quiet anymore. "I've never seen this place so clean. I didn't know we had hardwood!" He marveled, paws scratching on the newly visible surface.

"Don't do that," Lucy reprimanded, lifting her head to glare at the cat. Instead of shrinking away like she expected, he instead cheered and bounced over to her excitedly.

"Thanks for cleaning our place!" Happy said, smiling sweetly at her. His breath reeked of fish.

She could feel a but coming. "You're welcome."

"But can you make us breakfast?" The cat asked. He sent her a pleading look, as if his life depended on her giving a positive answer. Natsu shuffled past them and into the kitchen, wooden fishing poles dragging behind him.

Lucy yawned and sat up. "Yeah sure. What do you want?" She slowly made her way to the kitchen. Her bare feet slapped against the floor, and the sound made her more awake. Happy hummed, floating behind her. She pulled out a saucepan as Natsu began sorting through the things in the fridge.

"Fish." He answered plainly. Natsu pulled the jug of orange juice from the fridge and flashed Happy a mischievous grin. He waited until Lucy's back was turned before breaking the seal and drinking straight from the carton.

When she turned, he quickly stuffed it back in the fridge, Happy giggling merrily all the while. The blonde looked between the two suspiciously but didn't comment. "How do you like your eggs? Pancakes or french toast?"

"Can't you just make it all?" Natsu questioned, slouching in his chair and crossing his arms. He was hungry. He hadn't eaten since the day before, and having Lucy around to make breakfast seemed to be much faster than sitting by the river and trying to be patient enough to catch fish.

Lucy gave both of them a long look, then shrugged. "Fine." She turned to keep cooking just as a yawn ripped through her throat and stretched out her face. "Then how many?"

Happy slammed his palms on the table, the action meant to be frightening but only serving to make them all laugh at his expense. "What about my fish?" He demanded, leveling a glare at the blonde. She snorted in response, flipping a pancake before turning to face him.

"You can't have fish for breakfast, Happy. It's like having ice cream, but worse because it makes your breath reek." She said firmly. Lucy turned and set to making the scrambled eggs with a different pan, putting the turkey bacon in another.

Happy seemed taken back, and he sat dumbly back on the table. A look crossed his face, almost as if he'd been told the phrase a thousand times before. "Oh," He said simply.

The blonde turned to glance at him in mild surprise. Having learned of his love to tease and bicker with her, she'd fully expected him to argue over the matter. She was confused to see him staring blankly into the distance, ears matted to his forehead as he seemed to be caught up in a happy memory.

"How do you like your eggs?" She asked. Natsu's head snapped up to stare at her, and Happy pulled himself out of whatever daydream he was having to smirk at her. She blinked, scraping her eggs onto her own plate. "What?"

"You asked that already," Natsu said, an amused grin tugging at his lips. Lucy's eyes widened and a fiery blush spread across her cheeks. Had she? She didn't remember. The lack of sleep must've been starting to get to her.

"I'm just a little tired, I guess," She admitted, pushing the bacon and eggs onto her plate and moving on to Natsu and Happy's food. "Did you answer? I don't remember." She mixed the eggs, poured some pancake mix onto the pan, and put on some bacon. Another frying pan was set up for her to start making the french toast.

He leaned back in his chair, balancing on the back legs. "Doesn't matter, I'm good with anything."

Happy nodded vigorously. "Yeah, Natsu's stomach is like a bottomless pit," The man in question snorted, but didn't deny it.

Twenty minutes later, Lucy was setting down the meal she prepared on the table. Natsu and Happy didn't even wait until she sat down before digging in like they hadn't eaten in days. Her lip curled as she watched them devour the food. The blonde was reaching for the last of her bacon, watching Natsu grab the syrup.

He grinned, messily spreading the condiment around, nearly half of it spilling on the table and missing his plate. "My god, when was the last time you've eaten?" She said, aghast. A grimace was torn from her when Happy riffled through the fridge and pulled out the mustard to spread on his pancakes.

"It's been, like, a month." Happy said, squirting half the bottle of mustard on his plate.

"More like two days," Natsu said through a mouthful of french toast, which nearly made her more disgusted than the cats choice of food topping.

She shook her head, standing to put her plate in the sink. "Don't talk with your mouth full." She chided, grabbing a rag and wiping down the space where she sat at. Neither acknowledged the reprimand for a while, each too busy shoving food down their gullets.

Finally, after they'd finished eating and she'd long since moved to the couch to try reading Anna's diary. It didn't work out well. She was so tired the words all blurred together and had eventually just sat there staring at the worn cover.

Natsu cleared his throat to get her attention. "Thanks for the food." He grinned at her when she looked up. His smile was infectious, and the blonde couldn't help but return the favor.

Happy perked up, jumping from his spot on the table and sprouting wings. He flew face first into her ample chest, nestling himself there happily. "Yeah, thanks, Lucy!"

She brought a hand up to rub his fur and he purred in response. "It was no big deal," The blonde hummed, peering down at the cat's content face.

The moment was ruined, however, when he took a deep sniff of her and wrinkled his nose. "Wow, you stink." He said plainly but made no move to remove himself from her breasts.

Lucy's lip curled slightly, and that was just about the only warning he got before he was thrown violently into the fireplace. "Shut up, you stupid cat!" She howled.

Natsu cringed, slapping his hands over his ears and scowling. "Stop yelling!"

The blonde huffed, turning her glare on him. "Don't even try! You're yelling right now!" Her voice had raised even louder. She was surprised she had enough energy to yell and argue.

"Am not!"

"Are too!"

* * *

 **So... been a while? As I said in the beginning, this was just really hard to write. Next chapter won't take as long, hopefully. Anyway, I don't own Fairy Tail.**

 **Thanks to sarara1.8 and FlameDragonHime for reviewing.**


	7. Chapter 7

**.Servatorem.**

* * *

Mirajane's stare was piercing in the back of her head. It was like a laser was digging through her skull. Whenever she turned to look, Mira turned away, pretending as if she hadn't been so obviously drilling holes into the back of her head with her eyes. Everybody saw it, but no one had the balls to say anything about it. Not to the barmaid's face, at least.

"Alright. Bye Juvs, I'll be back by Monday." Lucy said. She waited for Juvia's acknowledging response before hanging up and stuffing her phone in her pocket. She counted exactly three 'Mississipi's' before whipping around at lightning speed to stare in Mira's direction. The barmaid was a millisecond too late in looking away, and they locked eyes.

Mira puffed her cheeks and moved down to an empty section of the bar, bringing her cleaning rag with her. She waved the blonde over as she began wiping down the surface, even though it was already pristine and polished to perfection. There was a dent in the wood that she paused to stare at, reminiscing over the memory it brought up.

Lucy looked at the woman skeptically but slowly crept through the few people lingering about. "Yes?" She said. The underlying curiosity in her tone was overtaken by her hesitance. Anyone else would've been happy to speak with Mirajane Strauss, but she knew better. In the three days she had known Mira, she'd caught glimpses of the model's hidden side; mischievous smirks, fury-filled glares, and a punch with enough force behind it to smash Cana's barrel to splinters. Lucy, for one, had no intention of seeing what the white haired woman was truly capable of.

"I'm worried about you," Mirajane stated firmly. Her blue eye connected with brown ones and Lucy was forced to look away from the intensity of her stare. Months ago, she would have stared back just as fiercely, but that piece of her burned out sometime between the resurgence of her insomnia and the horrid feeling of self-consciousness.

The blonde blinked, sluggishly processing the information. "Why? I'm fine," She knew Mira was on to her, but she'd at least try to play dumb a while longer. Maybe if she stalled long enough the other woman would drop it and move on, even though she didn't seem the type to do anything of the sort.

Mira tossed the rag into the sink behind her and began drumming her fingers on the table. "Don't give me that," She bit out, but there was no real anger or unfriendliness to her words. "You look like a zombie!" The words were whisper shouted, which the blonde was glad for. She didn't want these strangers hearing her business, even if they were more or less friendly toward her during the few days she'd been here.

Lucy cringed, nervously twirling a lock of hair around her finger. While her actions were a nervous tick, Mira just seemed all around fidgety every day. That's probably how the bar stayed so clean. In fact, she highly doubted the place would be in one piece without someone like Mirajane keeping things together. She sighed, forcing her brain to get back on topic. "I've haven't been sleeping well. It's nothing to worry about," She admitted.

She recounted the last time she slept; last night for maybe six hours, and it was really only because she was too exhausted to function. It wasn't peaceful though. She had been plagued with a nightmare that just didn't seem to stop. When she'd awoken, the nightmare was fresh in her mind, but now she could hardly remember what horror had occurred in the dream. Only the fear remained.

Mira looked like she wanted to press her, but Lucy the door was thrown open with a loud bang before she could. Both women turned to see the shrouded figure of Guildarts approaching. He dropped one of his large hands onto the blonde's head, messing up her neatly combed tresses.

Her shoulders slumped. She'd spent a lot of time on her hair to counter the half dead look on her face.

"Hey kid," Guildarts said, bringing her from her thoughts. Mira sighed and gave Lucy a look that clearly said 'this is not over.' She shuffled away, probably to clean another part of the bar.

The blonde twisted to peak at the scruffy man through the bangs that had, at some point, fallen into her line of sight. A part of her wanted to say that she was in her early twenties and was by no means a kid, but another part of her recognized that Guildarts was probably several centuries old. "Hmm?" She acknowledged as she started fixing her hair.

He loomed over her like a giant, but she was neither scared nor intimidated. From what she'd seen, Guildarts was more or less harmless to his friends, if annoying at times; especially to Cana. He grinned, eyes crinkling at the edges. "Good news. You won't have me hanging around you like a creeper anymore," He informed, voice gruff. His expression morphed to something that was borderline mischievous.

"Why?" She questioned in confusion. Even though she didn't know exactly where he was half the time he was trailing her, she took comfort in knowing that there was always someone ready to help her. Her hands dropped to her sides as she concentrated on the words coming out of Guildarts' mouth.

"You'll see," He said ominously before slipping away to coddle a snoozing Cana.

Lucy watched the brunette jolt and start yelling before she saw Mira approaching out of the corner of her eye. Her feet moved on their own, not wanting to give the barmaid a chance to interrogating her. She needed to go back to Natsu's and get her things together anyway; Monday was tomorrow, after all.

* * *

"Help..." Natsu whined, rolling over on the floor on the train compartment. He managed to shrug his travel bag from his shoulders and push it against the wall.

Lucy crossed her arms and smiled smugly. He and his weird blue cat had been annoying her all morning. Even after she fed them and told them several times over to just give her a minute to rest her eyes, they just kept blabbering in her ear like there was no tomorrow. "This is what I like to call karma."

He groaned again, shifting to haul himself onto the bench next to her and curl up into a ball. Plue made himself comfortable in a sunny spot by the window. The blonde assumed he would probably ignore them for the remainder of the train ride.

Happy sat on the bench across from them, munching loudly on a fish the size of his face. He paused to laugh at Natsu. "The train hasn't even started yet!" He muttered with a shake of his head.

The blonde nodded before snorting. "It's not like I asked you to come," She rested her forehead on the window, opting to look at the people mingling about at eleven in the morning. It was either that or stare at the sickly shade of green Natsu's face had turned into.

The train lurched forward with a screech. A garbled bunch of words escaped his mouth as his hand suddenly clamped down on her thigh. Lucy jumped, moving her gaze to glare at him. "Hey," She hissed. Despite her tone, she gently unhinged his fingers from her leg with a frown and took his hand into her much smaller one. She gave it a gentle squeeze in an attempt to comfort him.

"Master wanted us to come," Happy chirped, wide eyes conveying how much he wanted to laugh at him. The look on Lucy's face was the only thing keeping him from doing so.

"I see," The blonde mumbled. Suddenly, Guildarts' cryptic words made all too much sense to her.

Happy apparently wasn't finished with his statement, "Aaaaaaand," He drawled, lips quirking in a prankish smirk. "I know you've become really attached and can't live without me, so I'm saving you the pain of longing," He said, bursting into shrieks of laughter.

Plue raised his head to give him a disapproving look, clearly annoyed with all the noise.

"Happy?" She said, eye twitching wildly. The uncontrollable twitch only seemed to further annoy her. She closed her eyes, but she could still feel the muscles contracting against her will. The talking cat paused his laughter to stare at her. "Please be quiet." Her tone made it clear that it wasn't just a suggestion.

The cat sighed in disappointment and curled up on his seat to sleep. Lucy stared at him for a few minutes before taking out Anna Hearfilia's Diary and cracking it open. She gawked the script inside with wide eyes. For heaven's sake, it looked like it was written in three different languages, none of which she'd ever seen before. They looked ancient, even for the time the book was written.

She took a deep breath, closed her eyes, then opened them again as she exhaled. Her gaze focused once more on the text of the book, and she was more than surprised to find out she knew what it was saying. Lucy didn't remember ever seeing any of the symbols written, but reading them came as easily as reading the newspaper.

The blonde wondered if she'd learned them and forgot, but quickly wiped the idea from her mind. No way she'd learn three ancient languages and just forget about it. She pushed the thought to the back of her brain, deciding she'd figure it out later. For now, she would just read the first page.

 _"I am beginning this journal to document whatever events are to come in the near or distant future. It is my hope that the later generations will be able to learn from my experiences and adjust accordingly. I will say this now: Should this journal come to a stop, it means I have been killed. Below is the first entry._

 _"Being with child is no easy task. I hunger for things I usually do not and have a strange urge towards violence. I have taken to reading the stars to keep my mind off things. They tell me that I will be having twins. I cannot decide whether I should be happy or devastated. I cannot bear the thought that one of them will be born with the gift and the other will not be._

 _"Of course, that is of no importance. Not right now. They have suddenly come back, and we have no Mavis to stop them this time. They have already taken my husband and the rest of my tribe. Whatever it is they seek, they will not get it from them, and I am certain they will come for me next. I have a plan. Today I will contact him and have him help with the construction of a time gate. I must set the gears in motion before that happens; even if it kills me."_

* * *

The train slid to a slow stop, the wheels screaming noisily against the rails. Lucy hardly noticed as she was busy texting Juvia on her phone. Her friend's replies were a little slow. Usually, she got back to her within seconds but now she had to wait a minute or two, as she was doing something else at the same time. Juvia denied the accusation when the blonde asked, but her denial only furthered the suspicion.

She glanced up and out the window, easily spotting the familiar blue shade of hair against the dusk sky. She almost jumped from her seat but paused upon remembering the two beings resting on her thighs. At some point, Natsu had plopped his face onto one side of her lap and Happy had taken up residence on the other. She rubbed circles on her eyes, gently shaking her legs to jostle her companions.

"Come on, we're in Hargeon," She whispered.

Happy mewled, rolling over until he fell off the blonde's lap and onto the floor with a thud. Natsu did the same, landing in a heap directly across from his cat.

Lucy stood and glanced at them. If she weren't in such a rush to see her best friend, she would've laughed at how comical they looked. She shook out her slightly numb legs before grabbing her bag from the overhead compartment and slinging it over her shoulder.

She scooped Happy up and placed him on her shoulder. The cat crawled onto her head and curled his tail protectively around her neck in response, purring. Lucy paused to scratch behind his ear. She looped an arm under Natsu's torso and hauled him to his feet.

Natsu was barely any help as she half-dragged and half-walked him through the compartments, Plue trotting lazily after them. As soon as they were three steps away from the train, the fire mage revived, dropping to the floor and giving it a loving caress. Lucy spared him an amused glance before rushing over to Juvia, who was wildly tapping away on her phone.

She slowed when she got close, sidling up next the swimmer and peeking over her shoulder. There wasn't a name at the top of the screen, just the initials 'GFB.' Currently, they were talking about meeting at some place in Crocus. "Who are you texting?" She asked curiously after a moment, making herself known.

Juvia gasped and jumped, dropping her shiny blue phone. "No one!" She said defensively as the item clattered to the ground. She flinched, picking it up. Gingerly, she examined it for cracks or dents, giving a relieved sigh when she saw none.

"Sure," Lucy said sarcastically. "This person you 'can't wait to meet' must be some no one," She drawled, attempting to get another glimpse at the phone screen again only for Juvia to jerk away and shove the item into her purse. Happy yawned, tail flicking around on Lucy's neck and tickling under her ear. She let out a breath of a laugh at the sensation.

"I'll tell you about it later," Juvia relented, eyeing the cat resting on her friends head. "That cat looks familiar..." She scrutinized it for a few long moments before shrugging and looking at Lucy more closely. While the makeup hid what were probably dark circles under her eyes, she could see the tiredness in her gaze and the sag of her shoulders now more than ever. It pained her to see her friend like this, even more so knowing that there wasn't really anything she could do about it other than talk with her.

The blonde's lips quirked up. "I'm sure it does," She knew where the conversation was headed based on the look Juvia was giving her, and she looked over her shoulder to make sure the wild head of pink wasn't within earshot. She found him and her dog over at the pretzel stand and watched the two for a few moments. As Plue sniffed eagerly at the cart, Natsu slammed a wad of cash on the table and gave the woman behind the counter an expecting look. She stared at him dubiously in return.

She let out a quiet laugh at the sight, turning back to Juvia at the sound of the woman's throat clearing. Reading the question on her face, Lucy decided to save her the trouble and just answer. "Six hours the two nights ago and two last night. A few light times on the train, too,"

There was a deep, drawn out sigh from the blue haired woman. "Have you thought about pills?" She'd asked the question so many times before and already knew the answer, but it never hurt to try. Who knows, one day Lucy might give up being so stubborn and just take the damned things.

"You know I can't stand those things." Lucy shook her head and stared at the floor. She felt comfortable in her jeans and dress blouse, mostly because it hid all the flaws. In her mind, she knew she'd have to spill the beans about her self-image problem to her best friend, but there was no easy way to broach the subject.

The blonde raised her gaze to Juvia, who looked like she was about to say something. Her mouth clamped shut and she looked with a narrow eyed stare at something behind Lucy. With a furrowed brow, she turned to see Natsu approaching with what looked like the who shop's pretzel inventory balanced in his arms. He stopped next to her, staring at Juvia.

"Hey, aren't you that girl from Phantom?" He said. There was no animosity in his tone, just simple curiosity. He shoved a pretzel in his mouth as he awaited the answer to his question, not taking his gaze away from the swimmer.

Juvia recoiled at the question. She was by no means proud of being an ex-member of Phantom Lord and she absolutely hated talking about it. All it ever did was bring up bad memories. She made a strangled noise in the back of her throat before straitening and composing herself. "I am no longer a member of that guild." She couldn't even force the name to leave her mouth.

"How come? You seemed pretty happy there last time I saw you," Natsu grinned at her and Lucy couldn't stop herself from looking between the two, trying to decide if she should stop the conversation or not. While Natsu clearly didn't see anything wrong with the topic, she could read Juvia like an open book and knew she was starting to get uncomfortable.

"It was not really the right place for me, I guess," Juvia said vaguely. She'd only ever told Lucy of all the terrible things she'd done in that guild. That was three years ago, and if she never had to talk about it again it would be too soon.

Lucy determined that that was good enough. "We should get going, it's already dark out," She didn't have any doubt that Natsu and Juvia would want to sleep over at her place, but she wanted to get through more of Anna's Diary now that she was able to be in the comfort of her own home. She mulled over the idea of reading it in the bath and decided that was probably her best bet if she wanted to avoid the prospect of them reading over her shoulder.

* * *

 **I wasn't planning on finishing this chapter anytime soon, honestly. But recently, I read the first two chapters of GemNika's Writing Corner and I just felt inspired to get this done. I want to be as good as her someday; being able to sit down and write 17,000-word chapters but still make time for her school, husband, child, and all the other things on her plate. I can barely juggle this and being in high school! I think I'm going to try writing 5k word chapters like I used to (Don't worry, I won't cram a bunch of descriptions in to increase length. I'll just be having a few more things happen in every chapter). Anyway, I hope you enjoyed and I don't own Fairy Tail.**

 **Thanks to Flame Dragon Hime, Lady Mafia Dragneel, and sarara1.8 for reviewing!**

 **Don't be afraid to click that review button, it doesn't bite!**


	8. Chapter 8

**.Servatorem.**

* * *

The smell of Juvia's chili makes Lucy's mouth water. She hadn't had it in months. She sits patiently at the table with her hand tracing circles into the surface of the wood. Her free hand pets Happy, raking through his fur and causing him to purr every few seconds. Natsu stared at them from across the table. His eyes narrowed on Happy, who contentedly snuggled into Lucy's hand. He frowned, muttering a, "Traitor," under his breath.

The cat sent him a smug smirk in return. He spun to face Lucy, looking at her with wide eyes. "Can I have a fish?" He asked in a sickeningly sweet tone. He hadn't kept his mouth shut since they got off the train for nothing. If he played his cards right, he'd be able to mooch a week's worth of fish off Lucy.

There's a clattering as Juvia drops her large wooden spoon on the floor. Plue scurried over, licking the remnants of sauce from the back of the item. She goes rigid, turning to see who the voice belonged to. Lucy sighed. She should've seen this coming, but Happy had been so quiet that the fact that he could talk had just slipped her mind and she forgot to say anything about it. "What," Juvia says after a long minute of glancing around the open layout of Lucy's apartment, "Was that?"

Happy looked at her like she was crazy. "It was me, obviously," He announced, looking the woman dead in the eyes. After a moment of no response, he said, "So can I have the fish?"

Juvia nodded her head slowly, processing the information. She'd heard of talking cats, but she had never once seen one in person. Even though Happy looked weird, she just assumed that the cat had gone through a strange magical transformation.

Having licked the spoon clean, Plue trotted away, probably to go lay down and sleep in his bed. His dog tags jingled loudly as he walked, letting them all know he was leaving. Lucy watched him leave, only turning back to the cat when the noise of Plue's tag's clinking together stopped.

"We don't have any," Lucy supplied the answer when it became clear her friend wasn't going to. "Maybe you could get some from the store with Natsu?" She ended the statement with a jaw-cracking yawn. Juvia glanced at her over her shoulder as she picked the spoon from the floor and got a new one. There was an unspoken word in her gaze and the blonde quickly turned away.

Natsu tears his eyes away from the steaming chili to look at her. "Huh?"

She snorted and rolled her eyes at him. "Nothing," She looks back at Happy as he curls up on the table next to her. A comfortable silence falls over them as she ran her fingers through the cat's hair, the only noise being the sound of Natsu's knee hitting the table as his leg bounced up and down. A habit, she assumed.

His eyes eventually drifted back to the pot on the stove, and Lucy took the opportunity to examine his features properly; the way his jaw sloped abruptly, the unusual sharpness of his ears, how his shaggy hair spiked up in all directions, and even the strangely sharp canines she could see peeking through his slightly open mouth.

Juvia tapped the ladle on the side of the pot a few times, then faced them with her back leaning against the counter. The blonde blinked curiously at her. "Natsu," She paused to make sure he was paying attention. He was. "What magic do you use?"

He grinned and blew a plume of smoke from his mouth, causing the blonde to hurry and fan it away from the smoke detectors. At her glare, he gave a sheepish laugh. "Dragon Slayer." He said simply.

The swimmer's brows practically shot up into her forehead. "Uh, wow. That's... rare," She stopped herself from saying 'absolutely destructive.'

"And annoying! He blew up my hotel room and got me banned," Lucy hissed as she shot the sheepish man a glare, sitting back in her seat. Juvia chuckled and began getting out spoons and bowls, setting them on the table. She dropped a heat-resistant pad on the wooden surface before setting the pot on it, taking her own seat afterward.

"Dinner is served," She smiled, piling some chili into her bowl. Lucy followed. Natsu waited until they'd filled their bowls before pulling the pot in front of himself and eating straight from it. Juvia pursed her lips and sighed.

"You're going to eat the whole thing, aren't you?" She looked at him with a critical eye, only half amused by the situation.

He jerked his head in a nod and shoved a mouthful of chili in his mouth. Easily recognizing that he wasn't going to give up the food no matter what she said, Juvia changed the topic. Between bites of chili, she listened to Lucy recount some of the details of her trip, smiling and laughing the whole time. Happy was content to ignore them, preferring to quietly nap in an empty spot on the table.

They all finished eating at the same time, which was surprising considering Natsu had gotten at least four times the amount of food that they did. He let out a satisfied belch, patting his full tummy as he rocked on the back two legs of the chair. Juvia placed all the dirty dishes in the sink and began to wash her hands. "You're welcome," She said, passive-aggressively reminding them to say thank you.

At the same time, Natsu and Lucy snorted before grunting out a half-hearted thank you. Juvia nodded her approval. She maneuvered so that she was standing out of Natsu's eyesight, giving Lucy a pointed and meaningful look. When the blonde feigned confusion, she mouthed, "We need to talk. You know what to do."

Lucy dropped her head onto the table with a loud thud. After an exaggerated sigh, she looked up at Natsu and Happy. "Will you two go to the store and get some fish?"

Happy perked, "I was going to go anyway, but thanks for paying!" He said as Lucy took money from her purse and slid it across the table. She gave him a sour look, cursing him under her breath.

Natsu stood, pocketing the cash. Pensive, he said, "Can I get snacks?"

"Yes," Lucy shooed them away, standing up and shoving them toward the door. "The grocery store is on the other side of town. Please don't blow anything up on the way there," She watched Natsu and Happy run of, both excited by the prospect of food even though one of them just ate.

She stalled for a second, closing the door slowly so she would have a chance to collect her thoughts before facing her best friend.

"What do you want to talk about?"

"Everything."

"...I'll get the bath running."

* * *

"Well?" Juvia raised a brow, crossing her arms over her chest and causing water to slosh around in the tub.

"Well, what?" Lucy said stubbornly. "I'm not the only one with problem's here. Don't think I haven't noticed the nonstop texting and how you don't talk about how much fun you have at work as much as you used to." She fired back. Her arms wrapped around her knees to draw them to her chest, and she rested her chin on them.

From her side of the tub, Juvia deflated. "You go first." Seeing Lucy's unwilling look, she held up one of her balled up fists. Lucy did the same, and they counted to three before throwing out paper, rock, or scissors. Juvia ended up winning, her rock smashing Lucy's scissors.

"Shit," She muttered under her breath. After exhaling a deep breath, she met Juvia's eye. "Just confused, I guess." As an afterthought, she added, "And exhausted,"

Juvia nodded, asking, "Confused about what? I thought you already found the man you were looking for," She finished off with a suggestive quirking of her eyebrow.

"Cut it out!" The blonde muttered, splashing a little water at her friend and blushing. "That's not what I meant. Makarov, the guild master of Fairy Tail, gave me a diary that once belonged to one of my relatives. It's hundreds of years old and in another language, but I can read it, somehow," She brushed her bangs out of her eyes to watch a thoughtful expression pass over Juvia's face.

"That is weird," She hummed. "What's in it?" At that, the blonde's gaze shifted to the side.

"Can't say. I'll tell you later though," Lucy ran a hand through her hair in slight frustration. "Apparently I'm in some sort of danger. I might have to end up moving to Magnolia so Makarov can keep a closer eye on me." She snorted, "I can protect myself just fine though."

Juvia's brows drew together in worry and she placed a hand on Lucy's knee to get her attention. "Is it something I can help with?"

The blonde tried not to flinch away as a yawn tore through her tense facial muscles. "No," she said on the tail end of the yawn. "Not really." There was an uncertainty in her voice that showed through even though she tried to push it down. She felt unbelievably helpless not being able to do much for herself, and it was starting to rot away at what little self-confidence she had left.

"Lucy." Juvia hissed, frustrated beyond belief at the blonde's insistence that she didn't need any assistance, "Please, just let me help," Her irritated tone faded into a soft plea.

Clenching her jaw, Lucy ground her teeth together. Did _everyone_ have to go and try and help her, no matter how many times she said no? "I said I can handle it, for fuck's sake!" Her voice shook, and she closed her eyes to keep her tears of frustration from falling.

"Really? Because it doesn't look like you're handling it all that great to me," Juvia's sarcastic tone was comforting in a strange way, easing the tension that had boiled between them.

"Is it too much to ask for a little trust? I know my limits well enough," Lucy muttered with a huff, brushing her bangs out of her face. As an afterthought, she added, "Just because I'm not some immortal mage doesn't mean I can't take manage my life just fine,"

Juvia's expression soured at the thought that she would outlive her friend. "Mages aren't immortal, and I never said you couldn't... it's just," A sigh escaped her mouth and her gaze fell to the water. "There's nothing wrong with accepting help, Lucy," She said earnestly.

Lucy's brows scrunched together slightly. It sounded like Juvia was speaking from experience here. "Where's this coming from?" There was such a long pause that she didn't think the swimmer would answer.

"Phantom Lord was all I ever knew. And Jose... he raised me when I was abandoned by my parents. He used to tell me that if people couldn't help themselves, they didn't deserve to be saved," Juvia gave a dry laugh as she traced circles into her knee, "I realize now how crazy that sounds; he did help me, after all."

There was a moment where Juvia got lost in her thoughts, and Lucy cleared her throat to get her attention again. Juvia blinked, then continued, "Growing up I did terrible things to other people, for the simple reason that I didn't know those terrible things were actually bad. I was fourteen when Phantom Lord was finally disbanded for doing a bunch of illegal activities. Everyone was arrested. We were all going to go to jail, but an elder at the council heard of my sob-story and he saw the good in me. He helped me, sent me to therapy. From there, I met you, and the rest is history."

Lucy's hands clenched and unclenched under the surface of the water. "I get it. If... When I need help, I'll tell you," She said firmly.

Juvia smiled and sighed, "Thanks,"

"Now," the blonde started, raising a suggestive brow, "Tell me about this mysterious texter,"

The swimmer's face flamed. "He's just someone I met a few weeks ago. He was on a job and stopped by the pool for a swim,"

Lucy could tell there was more to the story. In their seven years of friendship, she'd never once heard Juvia talk about a boy. She waited for Juvia to continue, allowing the woman to collect her thoughts to collect her thoughts.

She didn't look Lucy in the eye as she said, "I want to go back to being a mage. I've been meaning to tell you, but with everything that's been going on..." The end of the sentence went unspoken, both of them already knowing what she meant.

Lucy pushed her bangs out of her eyes. Her back went ramrod straight and she took to bouncing her fingers of her free hand against the side of the tub; a nervous twitch. "Oh," The word came as a hurt whisper, but she quickly covered it up as she continued, "So you're going to join another guild?"

Juvia jerked her head up and down in a nod. "At first I thought of Mermaid Heel, or maybe Sabertooth," She started. After a moment of thinking over her next statement, she said, "But then I met a boy. He came to Hargeon on a mission and stopped by the pool. He told me he was in a guild, and I asked if maybe I could join someday. He... he said that I'd have to leave Hargeon, but of course, I could join,"

Lucy swallowed thickly. Why did it feel as if she was losing her best friend? No, that was silly; she doubted Juvia would just leave her in the dust for some guy she met. Though she wasn't completely convinced by her own thoughts, she put on a brave front and smiled. It wasn't her place to ruin Juvia's happiness. "That's good. I'm happy for you,"

"How could you say that?" Juvia's voice quivered as she said it, and for the first time, Lucy looked up at her. Fat tears rolled down the woman's face and she tried desperately to wipe them away. "I'm leaving you, my best friend, to pursue a selfish desire! I feel so guilty for being happy when your life is falling down around you!"

"I..." The blonde's shoulder's slumped. Juvia wore her heart on her sleeve, so the crying wasn't too big of a surprise, but her guilt felt like a stab in the gut. "Juvs, it's not your fault. I'm a big girl, remember? I can take care of myself. Mostly," The joke fell flat, but they both laughed anyway, Juvia's sounding more like a breathless sob. It was quiet for several moments, each of them taking the opportunity to collect their thoughts.

Juvia sank deeper into the tub and closed her eyes. After drawing in a long, slow breath, she opened them again. "I know. I guess I'm just worried. The last guild I was in corrupted me from the inside out and nearly resulted in me being thrown in prison. What if this is the same? What if I join and all of a sudden I'm involved in some illegal black market again? And... What if I never see you again?"

"Phantom Lord was a once-in-a-lifetime thing, Juvs. Stop doubting yourself and go for it. What's the name of the guild you're joining?" The words came out soft and comforting, and Lucy accompanied the statement with a supportive pat on the knee.

She shrugged. "I don't know yet. I'm going to visit in a few days to see if they accept me,"

Lucy stood from the water, causing the liquid in the tub to slosh around again. "You know what? You're an amazing friend and a great person. They'd be fools to turn you away." She rested a hand on her hip, finally noticing how pruney her fingers had become. "Now, are we done here? My hands don't need to be grosser than they actually are," She offered her best friend a helping hand, which was taken with a grateful smile.

When Juvia was on her feet, Lucy pulled her into a hug. "It'll work out," she muttered, squeezing her eyes shut. A part of her was trying to convince herself, and another was trying to convince Juvia. "Promise," She felt the swimmer nod against her shoulder.

The sentimental hug quickly turned awkward, and they both pulled away. "No more naked hugs," Juvia said, stepping out of the tub. "That was just... no."

"Agreed," Lucy said, doing the same.

* * *

 **I'M BACK BITCHES. Yeah, it's been a while. I'm taking my first AP class (AP European History) and I'm only just now starting to get in a comfortable spot. Haha, anyway, here's the background on Juvia some of you have been asking for. It's not much, but I plan to include little snippets here and there. Before I forget, a pat on the back to me for finally breaking 20k words!**

 **I don't own Fairy Tail.**

 **Thanks to the reviewers: DiamondWolf210, FlameDragonHime, Lizz Cold 790, sarara1.8, Lady Mafia Dragneel, noseinabook145, and Grandeeney Marvell.**

 **Don't forget to drop a review!**


	9. Chapter 9

**.Servatorem.**

* * *

Lucy was brushing the tangles and knots from her hair when Juvia casually dropped the question.

They'd left the bathroom and had begun getting dressed in the privacy of her bedroom. Juvia pulling on the spare clothes she always kept at her friend's house and Lucy shrugging on her pajamas before picking up a brush and beginning to drag it through her hair.

"Did you want to come see the Lamia Scale with me?" It was quick and to the point, which wasn't surprising since Juvia had never been one to mince words.

The blonde paused in running her brush through her hair. As much as she hated to admit it, she didn't want to. A part of her wanted to say it was because she wanted to spend a little more time at home, but that was a lie, and she knew it. Seeing the guild just made the idea of Juvia leaving even more prominent. It just felt like it would eliminate any chance that Juvia would change her mind.

"No," She finally said, "I think I'll stay home for a bit. I missed sleeping in my own bed." She glanced over at Juvia. The water mage looked like she was about to make some sarcastic comment, probably something along the lines of 'Oh, I wasn't aware you'd been sleeping in the first place by the look of those dark circles under your eyes,' but she didn't. Lucy almost wished she had. Ever since the bombing, Juvia hadn't been as harsh with her jokes, and she missed that.

Instead, Juvia simply pulled on her jacket and nodded. "Alright. I'll be at the pool all day tomorrow, so I probably won't be able to visit. Stop by or text me if you need anything, okay?"

The blonde nodded, glancing briefly out her window. The street lamps provided just enough light for her to see a head of pink hair making its way down the street. She smiled and started walking Juvia toward the door. They exchanged brief hugs before Juvia was out the door and on her way home to her own apartment, sending a wave over her shoulder as she went.

Lucy waited until Juvia had safely rounded the corner before she looked the other way, toward the direction she had seen Natsu coming. Her brows shot up in confusion when she saw no sign of neither him nor Happy on the empty street. She blinked, then closed the door. Maybe she'd just been seeing things.

As she locked the door, she heard a suspicious thud come from her bedroom. She approached the room slowly, walking on her toes to be as quiet as possible. She skirted in front of the ajar door. From the crack, she could see her window was wide open, curtains billowing in the breeze.

The blonde didn't wait to see what else was going on, slipping into the kitchen and pulling a used butterknife from the sink. The steak knives were in the draw and, though she knew it was better to use one, she didn't want to risk pulling the drawer open and making a bunch of noise.

She crept back to her bedroom, knife held tightly in her hand. Just as she was about to kick the door open, she heard a quiet, "What would this even cover? It's just strings!" followed by some familiar obnoxious snickering. Eyes narrowing, Lucy pushed the door open, only for her eyes to nearly pop out of her skull when she saw Natsu and Happy rummaging through her underwear drawer.

"What do you two think you're doing?" She hissed, waving her butterknife at them accusingly. The drawer slammed shut, the two boys slowly turning to face her. Lucy was mortified with what she saw. Happy had her underwear pulled over his head, his eyes staring at her through the holes where her legs would normally go. Natsu was wearing one of her bras, the straps pulled over his shoulder and the hooks unclasped.

Any angry blush rose to her face when they started laughing, doubling over and clutching their stomachs. Happy pointed a finger at her, specifically the butterknife she was waving at them. "What were you gonna do with that? Give me a little cut?" He said between fits of loud giggles.

Lucy wanted to throw the stupid butterknife at him. She didn't though, in part because she didn't want to hurt him, but mostly because she'd probably miss and get it stuck in her wall. She glared at him, "Why are you two idiots going through my things? Take it off!" She stomped over, snatching her undergarments off of them and angrily shoving it back into her dresser.

Her question went ignored, Natsu asking, "How do you wear that stuff? Looks like it'd give you a huge wedgie."

If possible, the blonde's face flushed even more. Why on would he ask her such a question? She didn't answer, instead going over to shut the window. This time, she locked it. "Why didn't you use the door, anyway? Were you _trying_ to give me a heart attack?" She muttered.

"Psh," They both said simultaneously. Natsu waved her off, jumping onto her bed. "'Cause the door's lame." The way he said it as if it were the most obvious thing in the world was more than a little irksome.

"You used it before! And get _off_ of my bed!" She yelled, grabbing his arm and yanking him off with strength she didn't even know she had. To her credit, Natsu was seemed a little surprised that she was able to pull him off so easily.

"But your bed's comfy," Came his childish whine as he got to his feet in front of her. He shoved his hands in his pockets in a pout. Happy offered a rebuttal to her previous statement, "That was because we didn't see it,"

"That doesn't meant you can just lay in it whenver you feel like." The blonde huffed, walking behind them and beginning to shove them out of the room. "I'm not going to ask what you did with the money, and you're not sleeping in my room. There are pillows and blankets in the closet, and the couch folds out into a bed. Goodnight!" She promptly closed the door in their faces, exasperated after spending ten minutes in a room with them.

She cut off the lights and closed the curtains, flopping onto her bed. For the first time in months, she fell asleep nearly instantly.

* * *

Lucy lay on her stomach, her chin resting on her pillow as she stared blankly at the headboard of her bed. It was nearly seven in the morning, and she'd managed to get a decent amount of shut-eye. She'd gotten six dreamless hours of rest before she'd woken up and wasn't able to get back to sleep. That wasn't really all that annoying though. These days, she was thankful to get any sleep at all.

Her head turned slightly, just enough to see Anna's diary resting on her nightstand. There wasn't really a particular reason she'd been avoiding reading it, but she didn't have anything better to do now that she was just laying in bed, unwilling to get up and start the day just yet.

She pulled it off the nightstand and rested it in front of her, angling so that the small sliver of light peeking through the curtains could shine onto the book's pages. She cracked it open to where she'd left off and scanned the strange symbols of the page, still curious as to how she could read it.

She read a few pages before mentally summing up what had happened. So far, nothing glaringly important had been written, but Anna had given birth to her two twins—but hadn't named them, for whatever reason—and met with whoever _him_ was. At times the diary was borderline melodramatic, and at some parts, Lucy just had to laugh at some of the exaggerations the woman seemed to be making.

Even so, she kept browsing through the book, hoping to find something interesting. So far, Anna had just talked about dragons and her pregnancy. She nearly missed the lines of text towards the bottom of the page because of how fast she was going.

 _I have chosen to name the eldest one Ashely and the younger one Lucy._

She ran her finger over the line of text curiously. Must've been a family name. A few more pages in, Anna had moved on to delve into her meetings with the mysterious man. The blonde perked, rolling over onto her back and sitting up slightly before diving back into the book.

 _He and I have managed to devise a solution, a plan that will defeat the Demons of Tartaros._

 _Zeref will create a gate. One that will take send the dragons through time to a period with a surplus of Ethernano, where they will then be strong enough to recover from their previous battle and defeat both Tartaros and the Apocalypse Dragon. He has decided to put the souls of the dragons into the bodies of their children. I shall be the one to open the gate and send them through. One of my decedents will open the gate in the future. It will take all of the Zodiacs to both open and close the Eclipse._

Lucy reread the entry a few times. Zeref was a new name, but she assumed that that was who 'he' was. This was also the first mention of the Apocalypse Dragon, but both names sounded eerily similar as if she'd heard them before. Now that she thought about it, the Demons of Tartaros was also quite familiar. She tucked the thought away, wondering next if someone in her family had already opened the gate.

She dragged a hand down her face in frustration. Most times, reading Anna's diary left her with more questions than answers, and it would seem that was the case once again. There were only about ten or so pages left. Hopefully, they would provide some answers. If not, she'd just have to ask Makarov whenever she saw him next. Who knows, maybe he'd also know why she could read the ancient text in the first place.

Sighing, she closed the book and placed it on her nightstand, taking the opportunity to glance at the clock and see that an hour had passed. With a grunt, Lucy climbed out of bed and stretched her arms above her head. She padded over to her dresser and pulled out some pants and a plain pink t-shirt that had a white stripe on the chest. Her eyes wandered over to her swimsuit.

She did want to go to the pool, but she wasn't sure she had the type of confidence to rock a bikini anymore. She decided against it. She'd visit Juvia at the pool, but she wouldn't change or get in the water.

Lucy grabbed her towel and her clothes before walking out of her room and to the bathroom. She passed Natsu snoring away on the couch-bed, Happy curled up quietly at his feet. It was a cute sight, one that caused her to smile as she gently shut the bathroom door behind her.

The blonde stripped off her clothes after turning on the water. As usual, she avoided looking in the mirror. She showered and dressed quickly, brushing her teeth afterward and pulling her hair into a neat side ponytail. Deeming herself presentable, she left the bathroom.

Natsu and Happy were up, the couch already folded back up and the blankets and pillows put away. She saw them as soon as she walked into the kitchen, Happy sitting on the table and nibbling on a fish—one that she wasn't sure where he got since he wasn't carrying any yesterday and she didn't have one—while Natsu was looking through her fridge with a half-chewed apple in hand.

She pulled a bowl from the cabinet and some cereal from the pantry before reaching passed him and pulling out the milk. "I was planning on visiting Juvia at the pool today," She started as she poured the cereal into the bowl, "Did you guys wanna tag along?" When she poured the milk in, she put it back and grabbed a spoon before sitting down across from Happy.

"Aye!"

"Sure,"

Came their quick responses. Lucy nodded, eating her cereal and relishing in the brief moment of silence. Natsu continued to eat anything that looked good in her fridge, and Happy just gnawed on his fish with a blissful expression on his face. "Where did you get that, anyway?" She finally asked once half the bowl was half empty.

The blue cat perked, taking the fish from his mouth and grinning. "We got it yesterday at the store. I bought enough to fill my bag!" He turned and patted the green bag he always carried.

The blonde hummed and they all went back to eating in a companionable silence.

* * *

Hargeon's streets were as busy as usual. People moved around and drove like they had places to be, which they probably did. Lucy walked leisurely, Natsu beside her with one hand in his pocket and the other absently twirling a flame around his finger. Happy lay lazily on her head, people watching.

"Say, Lucy," Happy drawled, curling his tail aroung her neck gently, "How come you don't have a job?"

The blonde stiffened slightly. They turned onto a less busy street, and she shrugged. "My parents left me a lot of money."

"What happened to them?"

"My mother passed away from Magic Deficiency Syndrome and my father died a few years ago."

"Oh. Sorry." Happy regretted bringing it up. She sounded so... sad when she said it, and he didn't want to keep talking about it anymore.

"It was a long time ago Happy." Lucy sighed, spotting the youth center up ahead. "We're almost there," She said, gesturing to the rather large building.

Natsu grabbed her by the elbow, frowning. "Lucy. Somethin' ain't right here. There's a weird smell,"

She turned to him in confusion. He was looking around at everyone around them suspiciously, but nothing really stood out. "I don't smell anything. Are you sure you're not just imagining it?"

He shook his head, eyes drifting to sweep over the tops of the buildings, but finding nothing there. "Natsu has enhanced senses because he's a Dragon Slayer." Happy said in her ear. Lucy didn't really know what that meant, but she got the gist of what he was trying to tell her. The mention of a dragon made her think of the ones Anna had spoken about non-stop in her diary, but she pushed the thought to the back of her mind to deal with later.

She nodded slowly, using her other hand to grab Natsu's wrist and begin leading him toward the pool. "Let's just get to the pool, alright? Maybe Juvia will know something," She suggested. Natsu didn't give her much of a response, letting her guide him as he looked around wildly for whatever it was he was smelling. His ears twitched, the sound of something moving through the air finally reaching his ears.

Lucy stopped in front of the youth center, tapping on one of the large windows when she saw Juvia back resting on it. The swimmer turned and waved at her. She pressed a finger on the glass, pointing at something behind the blonde. 'Who's the blond?' She mouthed. Lucy rose a brow.

She turned to see a man about her age. His hair was a dirty blond, going down to his shoulders and completely covering his left eye. Cat ears jutted out from the top of his head. He had hands like claws that appeared to be completely black, small diamond shapes being seen along his forearms. He wore a black scarf with tan polka dots and a sleeveless green shirt. A lighter green jacket was tied around his waist, covering his baggy white pants slightly.

The two things that caught Lucy's attention were the sinister smile spread across his face and the razor-sharp teeth that it revealed and the tail that swayed behind him. A deep sound reached her ears, and she realized then that Natsu was growling. Happy sprouted his wings and flew into the building. "I'm calling Gramps!" he called after him.

The blonde found it odd, but her gaze fell back on the dirty blond haired man in front of them. "Can we help you?" She asked slowly. His grin got even wider.

"I'd say so," He reached out to touch her, his claw barely grazing her shirt and still managing to slice her sleeve. Natsu's fist instantly lashed out and connecting with his jaw, a sickening crack resonating through the air. The other man flew back into the building across the street, and a magic circle lit up Natsu's fist.

"Natsu!" She guffawed. He didn't react to her voice, his eyes narrowed on his hand. "You can't just—" He turned, shoving her through the door of the youth center. Her forearms stung when she landed on them. She was certain that there would be a bruise there tomorrow. The blonde's eyes narrowed in anger and as she to turn her head and yell at him, the door slammed shut and she heard the telltale, familiar sound of a fiery explosion and glass breaking.

Her hands immediately clapped onto her ears, the sound bringing up horrid memories as an involuntary scream tore through her throat.

* * *

 **Bonjour, mon amis! I finally forced myself to finish this chapter. I've had the outline done for a few months now, just had to flesh out the story and all that. Honestly, I had more stuff planned, but this just seemed like a good place to cut it off. Hope you enjoyed.**

 **Thanks to everyone who reviewed: FlameDragonHime, Grandeeney Marvell, sarara1.8, and OneFineDay!**

 **Also a huge thanks to every one who has followed this story so far: acroleery,** **ALeoWonderer,** **arcadea333,** **arika001,** **baephrodite,** **booklover551,** **Compucles,** **Damntheluck,** **DiamondWolf210,** **ErNa-Chan,** **FairyTail9908,** **fuji99,** **Gaia Kame,** **Grandeeney Marvell,** **jazbara,** **JcL107,** **Juvia'sLoveRival,** **Karen67,** **Kaze Tsubaki,** **,** **KrispiKreme,** **Lady Mafia Dragneel,** **LoadedEel,** **LordPublisher,** **Lover of Writings,** **MAIDENCHINA23,** **megalomaniac132,** **Melime14,** **noseinabook145,** **OliTassell,** **RareDarkgon,** **Red-Velvet-Erza,** **Remembrance of The World,** **SacredFlames,** **sarara1.8,** **simpleory,** **The Restless Drifter,** **tuiandla75,** **VvnDaLu, and** **ZKARYX!**

 **I'll be thanking everyone who favorited next chapter, just because I don't want too much stuff down here.**

 **I don't own Fairy Tail.**

 **Please review, follow, and favorite! It means a lot to me when you do!**


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